http://www.theaustralian.com.au/index.asp?URL=3D/national/4157230.htm Screws tighten for 'job snobs' By NATHAN VASS 23may99 UNEMPLOYED people will no longer be able to stay on the dole forever, Employment Services Minister Tony Abbott said yesterday. The unemployed will receive $3.6 billion in welfare cheques over the next year. But as the Howard Government prepares to expand its work- for-the-dole program, Mr Abbott told The Sunday Telegraph the days of "career" dole bludgers were over. "The kindest thing we can do is not let people live on welfare forever," Mr Abbott said. "People won't be able to build a life on welfare. It will be almost impossible for people to build a career on welfare. "We will expect people to do something for themselves. We are moving to a situation where people who have been on welfare for a long time will have to do things to re-integrate with society." Mr Abbott's comments follow his criticism of Australia's "job snobs" =96 unemployed people who refuse to take so-called menial jobs and instead stay on the dole. "You might at some time in your life do jobs which are not particularly fulfilling, but they can be a means to an end," he said. "We talk about menial work, but in the end, a job is a job is a job." The expanded work-for-the-dole measures under the Government's "mutual obligation" drive come into effect on July 1. They will effect dole recipents aged between 18 and 34, who will lose part of their benefits if they refuse to meet their end of the mutual obligation deal. Unemployed people under 25 who have received the dole for six months and those between 25 and 34 on the dole for 12 months will be told to choose from a number of options, including work-for-the-dole, voluntary work and training. They will be given two weeks to decide what path they wish to follow. If they don't make a decision, work-for-the-dole will be compulsory and they will lose part of their benefits if they refuse. Work-for-the-dole will also be expanded to take in school leavers who have been unemployed for three months. With the scheme deemed a political success, it is understood some of those within the Government's ranks sympathise with the idea of expanding work-for-the-dole to all unemployed people. The Howard Government believes work-for-the-dole has not only struck a positive chord in the community, but is already helping put Australians back in the workforce. Mr Abbott said more than 40 per cent of work-for-the-dole participants have been placed in paid employment or further education and training within three months of leaving the program. NSW Liberal MP Charlie Lynn has compiled a submission to the federal Government calling for a modern form of "national service" to be introduced for the long-term unemployed. National service has not been in place since 1972. The scheme would not involve military service. It would use training camps set up in rural areas to boost regional economies. Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=3Dsubscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=3Dunsubscribe%20leftlink
