Government recovers over $41 million worth of false claims after 'rorting' of Job Services Australia scheme

Government recovers over $41 million worth of false claims after 'rorting' of Job Services Australia scheme

 

The Federal Government has clawed back more than $41 million worth of false claims by private employment agencies in just the past three years.

 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-23/government-recovers-millions-after-rorting-of-jobs-scheme/6193022

10 comments

Not good.  About time they closed all loopholes.

Thanks for the thread Sandi. Another example of privatisation ( CES in this case) not delivering the outcomes promised. A person obtains a job through their own efforts yet a jobs provider can get paid because that person is on the books. They did not find the job, get the interview or even know about the job until the client informed them they had found employment. Money for old rope is the old saying.

Close the loop holes, get the money back and give a long Prison sentence to the offenders and clean up the mess as this is what we should get in return from a real Government, nothing less.

Never mind giving the offenders a Prison sentence ... that costs us more money ... make them work to make up for their sins..... Send them to Africa to look after the the poor people with Ebola.

Yes it seems it is always easy to rort the system Geo.

But then the Rudds wouldn't be multi millionaires .,,

Do you ever get past one liners of no relevance to the topic ?

wiki

Business career[edit]
In 1986 she worked part-time as a rehabilitation counsellor, primarily helping people get back into the workforce.[10] In 1988 she founded Thérèse Rein and Associates, later Ingeus. This international employment services agency assists jobseekers, in particular long-term unemployed people, enter the workforce.

The Chairman of Ingeus is David Gonski AC, a prominent business leader based in Sydney. Other directors include Rein, Garry Hounsell, and Greg Ashmead.[11]

The sale of the Australian arm of Ingeus took place in May 2007 to ensure there was no perceived conflict of interest as her husband, Kevin Rudd was the Leader of the Opposition (and later the Prime Minister of Australia).[12] The Australian businesses sold in October and December 2007.

Ingeus re-entered the Australian market with the acquisition of Assure Programs in October 2011.[13]

Money well found!

How can people live rorting the system - always looking over their shoulder and with the constant fear/threat they will be caught and have to pay it back. No conscience I am guessing.

What an unproductive life with no peace of mind. 

good on the government for getting this taxpayer money  back.  How many years has it been going on?

Pete....... I feel sorry for you...........jealousy is a curse

Just goes to show there are a load of shysters out there all seeking ways to rip off their fellow citizens - legally or otherwise. Tighten up on all the rorts Australia's Income would improve and there would be no need to have a budget against those who can least afford it.

The rorting details revealed on Four Corners last night were truly shocking. The government may have clawed back a small percentage of tax payers money but have done nothing to close the loopholes and fix the problems. Why not??? Corporate greed is destroying our society in so many ways.

On another matter but indirectly connected, I was reading an article in today's Sydney Morning Herald titled "Dramatic split in PM's power base over finances and Credlin, leaked emails reveal" by Richard Baker and Nick McKenzie. The following paragraph leapt out at me:

"Mr Higginson wrote that he had raised $70 million since 2011 and recently "laid out my plans to the PM" to travel to the United States to raise "tens of millions" from donors."

Higginson is the treasurer of the Liberal Party. I thought "why would anyone in the US want to donate to the Australian Liberal Party"? The answer has to be US led corporations operating in Australia, like the one mentioned last night - Max Employment Agency - hurting our unemployed and rorting Aussie tax payers. Of course there are so many more corporations, and not just from the US, destroying our environment and ripping people off.  The Liberal Party would have to be partial to these corporations if they receive "tens of millions" in donations just from USA alone. Is it possible to turn things around and get back to truly governing for the people or have those days gone forever?

As a response to the 1991 recession the Labor government started planning for the creation of a competitive market for the provision of employment assistance. It began with the ‘Working Nation’ White Paper of 1994, which was a belated response to the massive unemployment that was caused by failed government policy response to the 1991 recession.

They refused to introduce an appropriate fiscal stimulus at the time and hoped that the ‘market’ would sort out the problem. It didn’t – and unemployment kept rising.

Under the Keating Labor Government at the time, one third of the public assistance effort for the long-term unemployed was given to contractors in both private and not-for-profit agencies. This quasi-market was subject to oversight by an independent government regulator and agencies were paid on a ‘fee-for-success’ basis.

This was the basis for the ‘new industry’ – profiting from managing unemployment.

 

http://bilbo.economicoutlook.net/blog/?p=30248

 

Geo an article well worth reading.

Thanks Sandi

From the same article.

The election of the conservative Coalition Government in March 1996 saw the abolition of the Jobs Compact programs and thoroughgoing reforms to labour market assistance.

The Working Nation strategy was derided as an expensive policy failure unduly concerned with process, and the continuing role of the central bureaucracy (the CES) was seen as antithetic to innovation and the tailoring of interventions to meet the needs of heterogeneous job seekers.

The Government identified cost cutting and the tighter targeting of support as explicit objectives of reform implying an ability to deliver both better and cheaper assistance.

Appropriations for Labour Market and Training Assistance were cut from $2.16 billion in 1995-96 to $1.2 billion in 1997-98. However, the principle goal of reform was defined as delivering better and more sustainable employment outcomes for job seekers underwritten by a more competitive, flexible and performance-based approach to the delivery of employment assistance.

In 1998, the focus on outcomes and the use of competition to allegedly drive greater efficiency and choice underlay the dismantling of the CES and its replacement by Centrelink (the government overseer of the privatised provider contracts) and the Job Network.

For further historical background – see the blog – Oh for a decent public employment service!.

The privatisation of the CES and the shambolic and corrupt system that emerged (the Job Network) was part of the trend towards mean-spirited government that led to the abandonment of a commitment to full employment and the retrenchment of a comprehensive welfare state.

Amazed that this wide scale rorting is only now "coming to light". The agencies have been doing it for years and getting away with it because no checks were made. Pretty disgusting state of affairs. 

From the ABC show last night there was a significant part from Anglicare boss. He said in affect that to participate in the job network meant being the instrument of punishment and counter to the objective of assisting with jobs and family care. I missed a little bit of the show ( reception problem ) but it was well researched and presented. The methods used to obtain funds could have been taken from the financial advisers handbook of the big banks, whatever it takes.

Geoff

This is a link to iview for ctch on programmes on ABC

http://iview.abc.net.au/

Labor is not exactly clean either since taking donations from big business in 1984 onwards which led to The Accord. Held back wages for productivity sacked heaps of workers those left to take up the slack and gain fatter profits for employers, who kicked them in the teeth starting 1989 onwards gling offshore for even cheaper labour costs and higher profits. Unions and thickies running them didnt do a thing too busy counting their own good luck having a job.And Hawke lowered the tariffs which is what destroyed the manufacturing in this country and led to millions of job losses to date.

Greens took 1.6 million in one donation so they are not clean either.

So none of them are worth a w*nk to be honest to put in union vernacular.

Seems to me the whole lot are corrupted by greed like the rest of the world.

These Liberal MPs are only panicking as see maybe off the gravy train next years election.

Labor is chortling as see chaos in Parliament over the lying Triggs woman who like the Greens can only see boat people because human rights is a left wing UN thing that allows them to interfere in each country at will now want to stop security council haveing veto so can utilize the troops of member contries to go do their will which means a disaster as usual never have the UN completed anything successfully starting with first endeavour the partitioning of Palestine. 66 years ago and still ongoing problems.

Meanwhile we are borrowing $110,000,000.00 a day to pay our way.

 From 4 courners. Around 780,000 on dole. 158,000 jobs pa.

Honestly the whole thing stinks doesnt it. Too busy with the Gravy Train livestyle in Canberra these days I reckon forgotten check balances and didnt even do anything when found problems cheating rorting fraud etc in audit. Public Service seems to have gone to pot too. Maybe because they did away with the Entrance Exam and cant get a job - go to public service.

Favouring one of other party these days doesnt make much difference and far too close to pick much too interested in playing the game some say 24 hour news cycle but it went bad well before that. And each successive government seems to be worse version of previous lately. Worst Labor and now worst Coalition imo.

One thing that realy gets me beat if this have to get women back into the work force because if we are short of jobs this is silly financially. Why? Because we are paying them to go on maternity leave then for child care to go back into work, meanwhile we are paying the dole for thousands who cant find a job too. See what I mean?

Back in most of our days, we gave up work when 6 months and didnt return until maybe part time once the youngest into school. That left our jobs free for up and coming behind us younger women for a start.

 

cannot argue with what you have said BigVal.

P.S. expect we will have Turnbull as PM before the end of next month.

And then get ready for the Abbot revenge show. He will NOT take it lying down.

What is wrong with this month ???

Would prefer Bronwyn Bishop though :)

I doubt that scenario would occur Robi. Abbott will not do anything that hurts his pocket and doing a Rudd would finish his career as a MP. I cannot think of any politician that did what Rudd did. Many backstabbed their leaders or stalked the leader but none I can think of actively tried to damage the party to achieve their aim. The Peacock/Howard backstabbing may have damaged the libs but that was an offshoot and unintentional. Same with Keating and Hawke.

 To my mind Abbott is reaping what he sowed. After years of castigating Gillard for one perceived broken promise he has destroyed his cred by breaking a dozen. He has destroyed his own self made image and alienated many in his party with his poor judgement. Liberal supporters must be looking on in disbelief.

I agree with your last paragraph Geo but not sure about the first. I view him as greedy for money, lustful for power and status and lacking in insight to his own failings but he is also Machiavellian so may very well seek revenge. We will see.

I think you are right Geoff and Abbott is now stepping onto that slippery slope towards "the flick". The backpain he is no doubt suffering is from Malcolms knives and I think his days may be numbered. Time for old mate Tony to be checking the "job ads" in the Herald.

I think he may well suffer the fate of Julius Caesar.....the knives are coming out.

kfc :)

Are you thinking about

Image result for beware the ides of march

bump

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