Council drops scheme

Changes affect work-for-dole program

A GREATER focus on giving work-for-the-dole spots to ex-cons and the mentally ill has led to the program’s effective abandonment by Cairns Regional Council.

The Federal Government’s work-based welfare scheme has been a valuable fixture in the Far North for years.

The council had a source of unskilled labour, while job- hunters received valuable training and experience which often ended up in employment.

The program was rejigged at the start of this year so group-based activities would target participants “who need the most assistance to improve their employability, that is, those who face a range of vocational and non-vocational issues”. Division 3 Cr Cathy Zeiger said it meant a focus on people with drug problems and mental illness.

“All of a sudden, I’m told the jobs I had lined up won’t happen because it’s been axed,” she said.

“I investigated it further and it appears now, according to the powers that be, that they’re only doing work-forthe-dole for people with significant criminal history or a history of mental illness.

“We do not have the capacity or training to work with that.”

A suite of changes were introduced in the 2017-18 Federal Budget, including extra emphasis on indigenous participation.

Local governments may still qualify as hosts, but Cr Zeiger argued special consideration should be given to organisations with a proven history of helping workers find jobs rather than treating them as slave labour.

“Council is structured in a way that we can do it professionally and give them all the references and everything they need, and assist them on to work placement,” she said. “For example Forest Gardens’ Sawpit Gully all got cleaned out by these guys.

“They learned how to use chainsaws, they learned how to do all this stuff that helps them get a job – council even employed heaps of them from this particular activity.”