Sickness and invalid beneficiaries capable of doing some sort of work could be shifted onto the unemployment benefit, the Treasury suggests in a report to the government-appointed Welfare Working Group (WWG).The WWG was set up in April to review the welfa
Sickness and invalid beneficiaries capable of doing some sort of work could be shifted onto the unemployment benefit, the Treasury suggests in a report to the government-appointed Welfare Working Group (WWG).
The WWG was set up in April to review the welfare system and recommend ways to improve social and economic outcomes.
The Treasury says its report, released today, sets out "a preliminary set of reform options" which need further analysis but could provide initial input.
It suggests changes could be made to "non-work focused" benefits – the domestic purposes benefit, the sickness benefit and the invalids benefit – because they lack a comprehensive work-capacity assessment which could be used to move people into "work focused" benefits like the unemployment benefit.
"Over 9000 people on the sickness benefit have been identified as being able to do some part-time work or light duties," the report said.
"Many OECD countries have undertaken radical reforms of the incapacity components of their benefit systems over the last 10 to 15 years -- some of the most effective changes that have been made include the development of mandatory work capacity assessments."
The report links the importance of people being in work with child poverty levels and says that at the end of last year about one in five children were living in benefit-dependent families.
"Child poverty rates are almost 75% for `workless households' compared to 11% where at least one adult is working fulltime," it says.
"Given the overwhelming proportion of children in DPB homes relative to the other main benefit categories, reducing child poverty will require particular targeting of this benefit group."
The WWG released a discussion document in August saying long-term benefit reliance had become increasingly prevalent and could make the system unsustainable.
At the time, Prime Minister John Key said the system should encourage people who could work to get jobs.
He said there were economic and social costs to having 377,000 people of working age on a benefit and it was too many people for an economy of New Zealand's size.
A spokeswoman for Social Development Minister Paula Bennett, who is overseas, said the Treasury's suggestions would be considered by the WWG.
Labour leader Phil Goff said it would be stupid to categorise people with disabilities as being unemployed.
The WWG is due to present its final report to the government by the end of the year.
