Older people struggling to find work on Newstart
Posted on: Fri 18 Oct 2019
“I’m forced to live with one of my adult children because I couldn’t survive independently on Newstart, no one could. It just wouldn’t cover the rent.”
About 25% of Newstart recipients are over 50 years old; one of those is Nick from the Barossa Valley in South Australia.
He speaks to Small Change‘s Lisa Burns about his experiences of trying to find work whilst living on $275 per week, as a 64 year old.
Produced by Lisa Burns
Image supplied and approved for use by Shutterstock
Nick gave a testimony that featured in COTA Australia’s submission for the Senate Inquiry into the adequacy of Newstart and related payments. Read the full submission here.
