Government discriminates against stay at home parents
As of September 1, parents with children in childcare will receive an increased rebate from the Federal Government.
At the same time, however, parents who chose to stay at home to care for their children and single parent families are being forced into the workforce.
New regulations, introduced as of July 1st, demand that single parents and dependant spouses seek work in return for Centrelink payments.
If they are offered work, they must take it, even if this means their children must stay at home unsupervised.
“One single parent, with two children under twelve, asked her Centrelink adviser what she should do if she was offered a job which finished at 5 pm, given that this would leave her children unsupervised for almost two hours once school finished,” Zuvele Leschen, the ALP candidate for Indi, said.
“She was told that they were old enough to look after themselves.”
“Similarly, parents who have chosen to have one partner at home to look after the children are now being penalized for this decision, with their stay at home spouse being forced into the workforce, whilst parents whose children are in childcare 50 hours a week are being rewarded with a bonus of up to $4211 a child.”
“Parents who stay at home are thus saving the government money, as they’re not accessing childcare services and not receiving the rebate. But they’re being pushed into the workforce regardless.”
“How can the Government call itself ‘family friendly’ when it discourages parents from looking after their children at home?”
“I support child care, but there needs to be recognition that there are a range of options for parents, and all of these options need to be supported for the good of the child.”
“If you’re going to reward parents for putting children in childcare, you should also reward other options chosen by families, including childcare activities undertaken by other family members, such as grandparents.”
At the same time, however, parents who chose to stay at home to care for their children and single parent families are being forced into the workforce.
New regulations, introduced as of July 1st, demand that single parents and dependant spouses seek work in return for Centrelink payments.
If they are offered work, they must take it, even if this means their children must stay at home unsupervised.
“One single parent, with two children under twelve, asked her Centrelink adviser what she should do if she was offered a job which finished at 5 pm, given that this would leave her children unsupervised for almost two hours once school finished,” Zuvele Leschen, the ALP candidate for Indi, said.
“She was told that they were old enough to look after themselves.”
“Similarly, parents who have chosen to have one partner at home to look after the children are now being penalized for this decision, with their stay at home spouse being forced into the workforce, whilst parents whose children are in childcare 50 hours a week are being rewarded with a bonus of up to $4211 a child.”
“Parents who stay at home are thus saving the government money, as they’re not accessing childcare services and not receiving the rebate. But they’re being pushed into the workforce regardless.”
“How can the Government call itself ‘family friendly’ when it discourages parents from looking after their children at home?”
“I support child care, but there needs to be recognition that there are a range of options for parents, and all of these options need to be supported for the good of the child.”
“If you’re going to reward parents for putting children in childcare, you should also reward other options chosen by families, including childcare activities undertaken by other family members, such as grandparents.”
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posted by Greg Naylor at
3:31 PM
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