Proposed minimum work hours for rebate - CareforKids.com.au®
New proposal for minimum work/study hours for rebate
Will this mean mums lose touch with their career?
A key consultation meeting between Social Services Minister Scott Morrison and childcare sector providers and experts last week aimed to discuss an increase in working hours in order to access child care subsidies as one of the components of Morrison's new child care package.
The potential change in eligibility requirements is a result of a recommendation by the Productivity Commission's Inquiry into Child Care and Early Learning and could mean that parents will have to work for 24 hours a fortnight to access childcare funding.
However, thousands of mums and dads with small children work less than the required 24 hours a fortnight to keep in touch with their jobs/careers and make going back to work easier and rely on the child care rebate to enable them to do so.
It's thought that more than 16 per cent of mothers - more than 100,000 women - work less than 24 hours a fortnight. The new rules may therefore mean these mothers will be forced to give up work if they can no longer receive childcare subsidies.
The potential new work/study test requirements will not just affect mums preparing to go back to work either. It could also affect thousands of parents who do shift or casual work and have unpredictable or irregular hours and is likely therefore to hit low to middle income families most.
The country's peak children's body, Early Childhood Australia, is calling on the government to make sure parents can access up to two days of subsidised child care per child per week, without having to work or study.
Currently parents are able to access 24 hours of the means tested Child Care Benefit per child per week, without having to meet a work or study test, with the only requirement for the Child Care Rebate being that both partners need to work or train "at some time" during the week - there is no minimum number of hours required.
The current situation means that mothers are able to ease back into the workforce, so they don't lose contact with their employers, teams and clients during maternity leave. The new requirements could make it a whole lot harder to do this.
Mr Morrison, who has previously talked about the need for stronger tests for eligibility for child care subsidies has confirmed that this is indeed "one of the changes" the government is considering.
The current activity test requirements mean that parents who are looking to enter or re-enter the workforce are able to afford to study, train or work fewer hours to build up experience to enable them to get jobs; for example working as a part time or "supply" teaching assistant in a primary school a couple of days every fortnight; doing minimal shifts in retail or call centres; or simply doing one day a week at their old job.
The current requirements enable them to do so, but new requirements for 24 hours every fortnight would mean that many mums were unable to afford to continue and effectively puts up barriers for the return to work instead of encouraging parents back into the workplace.
Join our discussion:
Should there be a specific minimum working or study requirement to access child care subsidies? If so, how many hours over a week or fortnight do you think would be appropriate?
