AUSTRALIA saying goodbye to a flawed system – the privatised employment services.

It’s a huge win. The report from a parliamentary committee investigating job services released last week echoes what GetUp members have been saying for years – that full privatisation of the industry has failed.¹

This marks a historic milestone in ending a John Howard legacy that allowed profit-driven corporations to exploit job seekers for over three decades.²

That’s over 30 years of subjecting job seekers to pointless workshops and harmful treatment, and putting up needless barriers to get people into meaningful work.

The committee recommended the creation of a new government entity – Employment Services Australia – that will act as a large digital provider for job seekers. The committee also suggested a regulator to act as watchdog, enforce standards, and handle complaints.

All of these follow a decision by Labor in August to unanimously adopt a proposal to enhance the public sector’s role in employment services.³

It is thanks to members like you working alongside movement partners that we managed to push Labor to prioritise the public interest over the wealthy few.

It required us working with allies to make popular what’s right. It meant exposing the harm caused by the current privatised system.³

In August this year, we launched a new report alongside the Antipoverty Centre that gave damning evidence of how harmful the system is – just weeks before Labor sat down to decide whether to bring the system back into public hands.

The 60-page “Punishment for Profit” report – made possible by 781 GetUp members – showed how private job providers continue to rake in huge profits thanks to public handouts, while causing harm to job seekers and failing to find them meaningful work. It provided exactly the push Labor needed to act.

Last March, we produced a powerful video which showed that the real villains of the broken system are the corporations using public money to make shareholders rich, not the everyday people trying to find work.

The committee failed to entirely rule out the private industry in jobs services, leaving the door ajar for corporations to try and water-down the commitment.

It also refused to abolish mutual obligations, despite recognising it is punitive, ineffective and cruel. Instead, it recommended an “overhaul”, the details of which will come to light next year.

So what’s next?

As the recommendations are studied by the government, we’ll continue fighting for the powers that put public interest over private greed – like we have for years.

From massive petitions, damning reports, media stunts, hard-hitting content, lobbying meetings, and nationwide advertising campaigns, our GetUp community has shown what happens when we work together as a movement.

We can hold the government accountable and push them to stand up against corporations making huge profits while everyday people struggle to meet basic needs — whether keeping the lights on, paying for groceries, or being able to afford safe and comfortable housing.

The growing cost-of-living crisis demands a robust social safety net. We’re not there yet, but together, we’ll pave the way.

Thank you for fighting alongside us.

In solidarity,

Chido and Raisa for the GetUp team

PS. It’s time to push the Albanese Government to stand up against corporations cashing in on the cost-of-living crisis. We’ve succeeded in eliminating the privatised employment service system. Now we need to take on the greedy corporations that are driving prices and raking ridiculously high profits during this time. Can you chip in to power our campaign on the cost-of-living crisis?

References:
[1] ‘Nuclear bomb to kill a mosquito’: Inquiry slams privatised job system, Sydney Morning Herald, 30 November 2023.
[2] The Howard government ‘radically transformed’ the job search experience. Will this government tear up the failed experiment?, ABC News 2 December 2023.
[3] Commonwealth Employment Service resurrection approved at Labor conference, The Mandarin, 21 August 2023.