Members of the Tomorrow Movement were outside Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s office this morning to demand that he keeps the rate of JobSeeker above the poverty line.
Members of the Tomorrow Movement gather with a sign reading “No Turning Back” at Josh Frydenberg’s office.
The government is threatening to cut the rate of JobSeeker, Youth Allowance and related payments in half.
We are raising the heat on Frydenberg and letting him know that if he chooses to throw people back below the poverty line, the people are going to fight back.
Our movement is going to fight to #KeepTheRate of Jobseeker above the poverty line. Our movement is going to say that there is #NoTurningBack to a world that only worked for big business. And our movement is going to win.
For us this means:
- An emergency increase to Newstart and Youth Allowance by $75 a week
- Plus $25 a week in rent assistance
- An annual increase anchored to the Henderson Poverty Line
For most young people on Newstart or Youth Allowance, it isn’t enough to cover rent, food, transport and unexpected expenses like looking after our health. Australia has the lowest rate of unemployment payment in the OECD. This is why unemployment is the biggest risk factor to living in poverty.
The University of NSW found that a single unemployed person needs $434 per week to cover the cost of the basics. This is $96 more than Newstart.
The old normal only worked for big business, not for us. There can be no turning back to a world where ordinary people didn’t have enough for groceries, housing or the medical care they need.
Big business is pressuring the government to lower the rate of JobSeeker so that they can pay lower wages to people desperate to return to work. Their friends in politics are already trying to use this crisis to make working conditions even more precarious and poorly paid.
Every young person deserves to be able to show up to uni with food in their bellies and to survive unemployment without facing the isolating experience of not being able to afford to leave the house. Lifting the single rate of Newstart, Youth Allowance and related payments by $75 a week would be the most effective step to reducing poverty in Australia and would make a real difference to the lives of young people.
We have a moment where we can choose not to go back to the way things were. Ending the influence of big business on our politics won’t be easy. But the only way we win is if we fight.
We can choose to fight for a brighter tomorrow: with a raised rate and liveable income for all.
