Protecting ‘work for dole’ staff is damaging charities

MANY charities rely on “work for the dole” staff to continue.

They are desperate for volunteers, depending heavily on this conscripted workforce to adequately function.

With the advent of unprecedented fires and ensuing smoke haze throughout the past few months, the Australian Government’s “Centrelink”, in its infinite wisdom, granted “work for the dole” recipients two weeks off before Christmas, in December 2019, a peak period for charities.

Now this has been extended to March 2020, to “protect” all those on “Newstart” from any effects of smoke inhalation, regardless of what Australian state they live in, fires or not.

They have only a minimal number of compulsory “work” hours weekly, anyway, unlike the “real world”.

This has left many charities short on workers, while those who volunteer willingly, face a backlog of work to continue with the impossible task of functioning as before.

This is an Australian-wide dilemma for managers.

They now have skeleton staff for three months, while work mounts up without those normally forced out of their comfort zones to actually contribute to worthwhile activities for those less fortunate than themselves.

Many charities do this good work, helping those living in poverty in developing nations which don’t have a generous welfare system like Australia.

“What’s good for the goose (apparently, isn’t) … good for the gander.”

Paid workers have no such benefits, rain, hail or shine.

Those who receive taxpayer funds without contributing to Australia’s prosperity, are “treated with kid gloves”.

ELOISE ROWE TANNUM SANDS