DISABILITY PENSIONER BLOCKED FROM SEEKING WORK
Kevin Crawley has been on the Disability Support Pension (DSP) for 10 years and wants to re-enter the workforce but is continually being faced with obstacles. He feels fit enough to go back to work but has found he cannot get any help from job agencies without being taken off the DSP. After going through a Job Capacity Assessment (JCA), the 57-year-old was told he could work eight to fifteen hours a week, which would entitle him to be taken off the DSP and go on to the less generous Newstart Allowance. Mr Crawley would have been happy with that, but the change never happened because the assessment result was suddenly altered, with no explanation. That meant he could not be switched from the DSP to Newstart or go to an agency for help in finding work.
Despite getting two certificates from his doctor saying he is fit to work, Mr Crawley’s pension still has not been changed. A Department of Human Services (DHS) spokeswoman said the department believed Mr Crawley should be on the DSP. She said that a disability pensioner could choose to apply for the Newstart Allowance, which would provide access to job agencies, but had to be assessed first. These assessments are conducted by qualified health or allied health professionals who consider medical evidence from a doctor or specialist and also take other factors into account.
6. Read the case study and answer the following questions.
1. What is the case study about?
a. A pensioner who wants to go back to work.
b. A disabled person who wants to go back to work.
c. A disabled person who asks for a higher pension.
d. A disabled person who wants to work eight hours a day without losing his pension.
2. What did he do first?
a. He went to a job agency.
b. He went to his doctor.
c. He went to the DHS.
d. He went through a JCA.
3. Why is it impossible for Kevin to get a job?
a. He is 57.
b. He has a Disability Support Pension.
c. He has a Newstart Allowance.
d. He does not have a doctor’s certificate.
4. What does the spokeswoman of the DHS say?
a. Kevin needs to stay on a DSP.
b. People with a DSP could choose a Newstart Allowance.
c. Job agencies are responsible for the assessment.
d. Assessment is carried out by doctors.
7. Discuss in small groups.
Do you think people on a disability pension should be able to find work if they want it?
