A new initiative, the Youth Jobs Path program, will provide $752 million to get people under 25 and currently on employment benefits trained to enter the workforce.
The $752 million Youth jobs PaTH – Prepare, Trial, Hire - will begin from 1 April 2017 and will involve young job seekers participating in intensive pre-employment skills training within five months of registering with ‘jobactive’.
The participants will take part in an internship program with up to 120,000 placements over four years. The job seekers will receive $200 per fortnight on top of their regular income support payment while participating in the internship. Businesses who take on interns will receive an upfront payment of $1000.
Each intern will work 15 to 25 hours per week and receive $200 a fortnight on top of their regular welfare benefits.
Prospective interns will need to have been looking for a job for at least six months.
“[The businesses] will also benefit from the opportunity to see what a young worker can do and how they fit into the team,” federal Treasurer Scott Morrison said.
In the final stage of the program Australian employers will be eligible for a Youth Bonus wage subsidy of between $6500 and $10,000.
They will have the choice to employ the young person directly or through a traineeship.
“The [program] is an important part of the Turnbull government’s economic plan for jobs and growth,” Mr Morrison said.
The Government will also expand the New Enterprise Incentive Scheme (NEIS) to encourage self-employment and entrepreneurship, including by providing mentors and workshops on "being my own boss".
The number of NEIS places will rise, and it will also be made available to recently retrenched workers.
The Government also expects the introduction of a compulsory rent reduction scheme for people living in subsidised housing while on welfare benefits will reduce the number of evictions.
Changes to work for the dole
Unemployed people struggling to find work will now wait longer to enter the Work for the Dole phase.
From October 1, 2016, job seekers classified as ‘stream A’ will take part in the Work for the Dole phase 12 months after entering jobactive, rather than six.
The budget measure is expected to impact their mutual obligations and requirements under the scheme rather than their own personal finances.
