In Anti-Poverty Week ACOSS has released new analysis which shows that the woefully low JobSeeker payment is just 20% of the average wage.
The ACOSS Briefing on Solutions to Poverty shows that while the average wage in Australia is $1,923 per week, JobSeeker is just $393. The payment is only 43% of the $916-per-week minimum wage, and has dropped to just 69% of the $572-per-week pension.
Youth Allowance at $319.50 per week is even lower, making up just 17% of the average wage, 35% of the minimum wage and 56% of the pension.
ACOSS is advocating for clear solutions to poverty, including raising the rate of income support.
"Australia's totally inadequate income support payments are a primary cause of poverty in one of the wealthiest nations on Earth. Our unemployment payment is among the lowest in the OECD. It is a political choice and driving persistent poverty," said ACOSS CEO Cassandra Goldie.
"People receiving Youth Allowance or JobSeeker are falling further behind both people in paid work and pensioners.
"Every day, people doing it tough are forced to go hungry, forgo essential medicine, and worry about finding or keeping a roof over their head. One of the quickest and most effective ways to lift people out of poverty is to raise the rate."
Currently, 60% of households relying on JobSeeker live below the poverty line.
ACOSS is urging the Federal Government to increase JobSeeker from $56 per day to at least $82 per day to bring it in line with the pension.
JobSeeker and related income support payments should be indexed to the higher of wage growth or inflation, instead of just inflation.
"As prices continue to rise and wages increase, it is vital that unemployment and related payments are adjusted to reflect the reality of living costs," said Dr Goldie.
"We cannot allow people out of paid work to fall further behind, pushing more people into poverty."
ACOSS is also advocating for a strategy to halve poverty by 2030, including setting national targets and definitions of poverty, increasing investment in social housing and First Nations organisations and creating more employment opportunities for those facing barriers to paid work. See ACOSS Briefing on Solutions to Poverty here.
