Saturday, July 30, 2005

$2000 rent arrears

DH went into shock to hear that she is  3 pay periods in arrears. That's a cool $1800 folks. She has been frantically searching for this year's rent receipts in the hope that something went amiss between Australia Post and DOH. How hard it is to earn money like that, how easy it is to lose track. But if not, well there goes this years tax refund... What the Govt gives with one hand, the Govt takes with the other. 
 
And somewhere, while the same $2000 endlessly changed hands, in the interstices, we managed to eat, buy some work clothes, pay for medical insurance that doesnt meet the gap anymore so you cant get sick anyway, paid for the dentist and some new glasses,  reregistered the old '84 Toyota warhorse for another year.
 
But DH hears that even non-housos are far from relaxed and comfortable.
 
Anyhow, DH admires the frontline troops on the counters of CentreLink and DOH... They're the ones that cop the flak for draconian government policies. Today's lot were subjected to a top volume haranguing from a dead drunk yobbo for the whole hour that DH was there. They remained unfailingly polite, where DH would have liked to bundle the poor sod into a taxi and dispatch him to Kirribilli House to harass the real guilty party.
 
I wonder if that party is also paying 30% of his salary for his Government Housing. The relevant authorities should sell of the property and send him to live in Campbelltown, where he would be closer to work.

Sunday, July 24, 2005

DH buttonholes the Minister for Workforce Participation

Getting a bit Orwellian, isnt it???

A Ministry of Workforce Participation already!!!. Ve hef veys of making you vork....

Or, carrots for the rich and sticks for the poor...

The Minister. Peter Dutton, is a bright young thing and speaks glowingly of the benefits of workplace participation, and all the incentives the Libs offer.

DH tells him that despite earning 1500 a week as a contractor, no holiday pay, sick leave or anything of crse, she is only $80 a week better off than she was on the carer's pension.

"What kind of incentive is THAT?" she inquires triumphantly.

Both he and minder visibly blanch. They havent thought that one through. It cd upset the middle classes.

He recovers quickly, "Well, I dont know anything about that. I'd have to see the spreadsheet first".

"NOT A PROBLEM :-) ! ! !" DH triumphs again, diving into her briefcase. "I happen to have one right here."

The rest of you can see this at www.aspar.klattu.com.au/housospread

At Question time, DH also asked the Minister how Industrial Relations "Reforms" (oh please) especially changes to unfair dismissal laws will impact people with disabilities who may not be able to perform to benchmarks.

Not a problem, says Peter Dutton, because they will still be protected by Disability Discrimination Laws...

Yeah, but, it takes several years to establish a discrimination claim, Peter, but if you were dismissed unfairly, how you gonna pay for the legal fees....

That's the trouble with the Libs. Grand ideological new brooms all over the place. No clue about how its all going to fit together...

DH gatecrashes Aust Social Policy Conference ...

... cant quite afford the $220 a day ...

The Disability Rights movement has a motto "Nothing about us, without us". In other words, "dont research us, make decisions about us without our participation".

DH found herself wondering if ASPC's motto was:

ALL ABOUT "THEM"
WITHOUT THEM!
Certainly she heard some wonderful papers about how terrible our lives were, which made her feel quite depressed. And State Apparatchiks need these papers because its the only way of actually rubbing their noses in the obvious they might otherwise step over...
But she was scratching her head when, at one session on how terrible the lives of housos were, she invited all present to see her after class if they were interested in the EXCITING new initiatives housos were engaging in to help themselves. She couldnt believe it when the whole audience filed past her with EYES AVERTED at the end of the session.
Is there some stigma attached to being a Houso that is too scary for "professional" helpers???

Tuesday, July 19, 2005

DH hasnt had income for 6 WEEKS now....

... except her daughter's Student Allowance of $169 per fortnight.

UNBELIEVABLE!!!

How is DH surviving you ask?

CREDIT. What ELSE?

Her mother's pension.

Her life savings are gone.

And if you're one of DH's best friends, and she conned you into reading this, be very afraid... She's about to put the hard word on you :-)

Friday, July 01, 2005

Centrelink gives $600 & takes away $1000...

The good news. $600 to CentreLink recipients of Carer's Allowance.

The bad news. DH misses out on the $1000 for recipients of Carer's Payment, since she wasnt deemed to be on it on the nth of May.

Although she wd have been technically if they hadnt moved the goalpost (see below)