Centrelink lines

[marty998]

Reinforcing the need for Emergency Funds, it’s really troubling seeing the lines outside of Centrelink.

I do understand that circumstances mean many people for whatever reason live week to week. But it still makes me wonder we are not one week into a partial shutdown and tens of thousands need support already.

Be thankful that you guys here are on balance likely to be ok for a fair while longer.

[Bloop Bloop]

I can understand why someone who's working a shitty casual job would go onto C/link straight away.

Somehow I feel like the people in those queues are not just the underpaid. Some of them earn decent amounts, and spend it all. Will never understand how people manage to do that.

[deborah]

If I was about to be laid off, I’d probably be in those lines as soon as possible. The people in the lines might be some of our better organised citizens.

[Bloop Bloop]

If I was about to be laid off, I’d probably be in those lines as soon as possible. The people in the lines might be some of our better organised citizens.

Aren't there waiting periods to go on the dole for most people with liquid assets above a certain (modest) amount? If you or I were laid off, we might be waiting months or years before we were eligible.

[deborah]

If I was about to be laid off, I’d probably be in those lines as soon as possible. The people in the lines might be some of our better organised citizens.

Aren't there waiting periods to go on the dole for most people with liquid assets above a certain (modest) amount? If you or I were laid off, we might be waiting months or years before we were eligible.

I was speaking hypothetically as I'm already retired. The new package removed the assets test for unemployment benefits. Even with the assets test, it doesn't take very long to be eligible.

[Dropbear]

It's a shitty situation.  What can one do when Centrelink's website is continuously failing and the phone lines are jammed?

Safe to say that this could have all been handled much better.  Like give everyone who turns up at Centrelink to apply an immediate "we have begun your application" notice and send them home again, that way at least Centrelink can try and "spread the curve" and still backdate everyone's payments to their first day.

[Ozlady]

I can understand why someone who's working a shitty casual job would go onto C/link straight away.

Somehow I feel like the people in those queues are not just the underpaid. Some of them earn decent amounts, and spend it all. Will never understand how people manage to do that.

Yep, my tenant of many years just called to say he has been abruptly laid off...and cannot make his rent payment this month...

He is in hospitality and it is brutal out there...i am quite surprised as he has always paid his rent on time for many years...and to hear that he has not got an emergency fund ...

Worse thing he has never been to Centrelink in his life and it is so bewildering to navigate it atm......i instructed my property manager to help him and am stepping in to give him some relief...must be so stressful on the poor chap:(

Moral of the story:  Most Australians have very poor financial literacy...

[middo]

I can understand why someone who's working a shitty casual job would go onto C/link straight away.

Somehow I feel like the people in those queues are not just the underpaid. Some of them earn decent amounts, and spend it all. Will never understand how people manage to do that.

Yep, my tenant of many years just called to say he has been abruptly laid off...and cannot make his rent payment this month...

He is in hospitality and it is brutal out there...i am quite surprised as he has always paid his rent on time for many years...and to hear that he has not got an emergency fund ...

Worse thing he has never been to Centrelink in his life and it is so bewildering to navigate it atm......i instructed my property manager to help him and am stepping in to give him some relief...must be so stressful on the poor chap:(

Moral of the story:  Most Australians have very poor financial literacy...

I went out shopping yesterday and saw the line outside our local centrelink office.  I guess if I was laid off, I would be looking to get onto the payments as soon as possible, whether I needed them or not. 

I am also happy on reflection that we have tenants who are teachers, nurses and a FIFO worker for BHP.  None of them are likely to be affected by the shut down, although the BHP worker may get stuck in the Pilbara for a while if a real shutdown occurs.

We can manage the repayments for a while without tenants, but I suspect not all are in this position also.

[Dropbear]

Centrelink now have a "register intent to claim" button on MyGov, so it appears this a new way for a person to start their claim online (before, they used to have to call or visit Centrelink to get a customer number before they could start their application), and then hopefully they can sort out the rest of their claim either online and/or on the phone.  If their payment is approved, it gets backdated to the first registration date.

Good on Centrelink for that one.  Hopefully there's less need for people to wait in line this way...

No idea how long a claim takes to get approved though.  I hope people have enough saved to enable them to hang on until their claims come through.