Unemployment figures for the last quarter released today show 37,000 people have lost their jobs due to Covid-19. Auckland Action Against Poverty says the current welfare system requires transforming to ensure that these people who are recently unemployed as well as people receiving benefits have enough to thrive.
“We are not surprised at the massive amount of people who are out of work due to this pandemic and were expecting this September quarter to be more reflective of what’s actually happening on the ground,” says Auckland Action Against Poverty Coordinator Brooke Stanley Pao.
The rise in unemployment has also impacted Māori, Pasifika, women and our young people the hardest.
“Being out of work often means that people are made to feel guilt and shame about not being able to pay for themselves and contribute to their families. This Labour government has the power to change our system from disempowering and dehumanising people to one that honours the right of everyone to have enough income for themselves and their families to live on, irrespective of their employment status.
“Auckland Action Against Poverty are seeing the impacts of this increased unemployment at Work & Income offices, as case managers are inundated with an increase in food grants and more people requiring support because of hardship.
“Many of the people we work with have been declined by the call centre, as case managers defer much of their work to them and these people simply don’t have the training or the same powers as case managers. There are long wait times when you’re on the phone, and often people are waiting for days to get a response for their immediate needs.
“The government needs to urgently increase benefits to liveable levels, which we saw happen when they responded with the Covid Income Relief Payment at almost double the rate of the jobseeker benefit. Liveable incomes for all as well as secure and safe public housing are human rights that should be available to everyone, not just to those of us who can afford it.”
Sepuloni did little in the last three years so why would she change this time .
This or any government are not going to solve poverty until they can build more home with speed . Any increase in benefit will be lost by increase in rents if the landlords think they can pay . Being a private landlord is a business not a social agency so the only think that will keep rent down is competition from the state.
Repeat after me…
-Increase Benefits
-Individualise Benefits
-Drop all stand downs, and drastically lower abatement rates
-Allow seamless movement between paid work and welfare, and welfare/part time work
-Plan for a Basic Income administered by IRD
-Plan to retire WINZ/MSD in current form, replace with Basic Income and a new Social Welfare Dept. based on a service model for disabled and special needs.
And as Trevor says, housing is a vital piece of the equation-build, build, build Labour Govt.
nice, it will never happen but v.good ideas.
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