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Community Attitudes Towards Unemployment, Activity Testing and Mutual Obligation

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  • Tony Eardley
  • Peter Saunders
  • Ceri Evans

Abstract

Those elements of activity testing described as ‘mutual obligation’ are becoming increasingly important in social security policy towards unemployed people. In order to provide more information about public attitudes to this policy, the SPRC included a set of questions in its survey on Coping with Economic and Social Change, carried out in 1999. The survey found broad support for the application of many, though not all, aspects of mutual obligation principles to young unemployed people and, to a lesser extent, to the long-term unemployed. When applied to other groups, however, especially older unemployed people, those with disabilities and those with parental responsibilities, this support was considerably more qualified. Respondents made clear distinctions in how they viewed the requirements appropriate for different groups. In relation to most unemployed groups except the young, attitudes varied according to respondents’ age, labour force status, income, education, political affiliation and housing tenure. In particular, attitudes to mutual obligation seemed to soften with older age, while they hardened as income and education levels rose. There was also some support for reconsidering the rules of eligibility for income support for sole parents, but no overwhelming view that they should automatically be expected to seek paid work when they still have young children to care for. Although there are differing views on what should be done about unemployment, most Australians believe that government still has an important role. In this sense, people see obligations as needing to be mutual, not just a one-sided burden of compliance to be shouldered by the unemployed.

Suggested Citation

  • Tony Eardley & Peter Saunders & Ceri Evans, 2000. "Community Attitudes Towards Unemployment, Activity Testing and Mutual Obligation," Discussion Papers 00107, University of New South Wales, Social Policy Research Centre.
    • Handle: RePEc:wop:sprcdp:00107
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    File URL: http://www.sprc.unsw.edu.au/dp/dp107.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Peter Saunders, 2001. "Welfare Reform, Work and the Labour Market," The Economic and Labour Relations Review, , vol. 12(1), pages 151-164, June.
    2. Lars Osberg, 2011. "Why Did Unemployment Disappear from Official Macro-Economic Policy Discourse in Canada?," New Directions for Intelligent Government in Canada: Papers in Honour of Ian Stewart, in: Fred Gorbet & Andrew Sharpe (ed.),New Directions for Intelligent Government in Canada: Papers in Honour of Ian Stewart, pages 127-162, Centre for the Study of Living Standards.
    3. Cobb-Clark, Deborah A. & Dahmann, Sarah C. & Gielen, Anne C., 2020. "The Intergenerational Effects of Requiring Unemployment Benefit Recipients to Engage in Non-Search Activities," IZA Discussion Papers 13618, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Peter Saunders & Judith Brown, 2004. "Labour Market Conditions, Applications and Grants of disability support Pension (DSP) in Australia," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 7(3), pages 395-410, September.
    5. Peter Saunders, 2007. "Mutual obligation, unemployment and wellbeing," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 10(3), pages 167-184.
    6. Robert J. Grose, 2011. "Indirect government controls over Australia's social security expenditure: A Foucauldian analysis," Managerial Auditing Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 26(6), pages 519-533, June.

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