SSRV is recruiting a Community Lawyer. You’ll find all the details on the job advertisement on the Ethical Jobs website.

Social Security Rights Victoria is recruiting a Principal Lawyer.  38 hours per week. Applications close 17 May 2022. Please see the job advertisement and position on the Ethical Jobs website –  https://www.ethicaljobs.com.au/members/SSRV/principal-lawyer-6

Please note due to technical difficulties our 94810355 and 94810299 numbers are not currently working. Please call 0419793652. We are hoping to resolve this as soon as possible.

The JobKeeper Payment eligibility rules and payment rates are changing. Here’s what you need to know.

What’s changing?

From 4 January 2021, the JobKeeper Payment rate has changed to:

• $1,000 per fortnight for people who worked more than 20 hours a week on average during February or June 2020;
• $650 per fortnight for people who worked less than 20 hours a week on average during February or June 2020.

This is less than the current rate of JobKeeper Payment.

What this means for you

These changes may mean people not previously eligible for JobSeeker, due to the rate of JobKeeper, may now be eligible for JobSeeker, or another benefit. 

This is because the new rates of JobKeeper are now lower than the income cut off points for JobSeeker and some other Centrelink payment eligibility.

If you are receiving JobKeeper you should consider whether your circumstances might now mean you are eligible to receive JobSeeker as well.

If you think this applies to you, you should submit an online claim for JobSeeker payment now.

You can find out more about the changes to JobKeeper Payment elibility and rates and how to start an online claim, on the Services Australia website.

If you’re not sure how to claim a Centrelink payment, this Economic Justice Australia Factsheet is handy for step-by-step instructions and guidance.

Remember, if you are receiving a Centrelink benefit and are required to report your income to Centrelink, you must include your JobKeeper payment.

What is JobKeeper Payment?

JobKeeper Payment is made by the Australian Tax Office to eligible employers to pay to their eligible employees as part of or instead of their normal wages. You should speak to your employer if you think you might be eligible for JobKeeper and are not currently receiving it.

The JobKeeper Payment has been extended until 28 March 2021.

You can find out more about JobKeeper Payment on the ATO website.

Need advice?

If you live in Victoria and would like advice about this change, or have other social security/Centrelink questions, you can call our General Advice Line, Monday – Thursday between 9:30am and 12:30pm on 0419 793 652.

If you live in another state, here’s where you can find your closest social security legal service. 

Do you receive Centrelink payments and are currently required to report your family’s income?

If so, the way you report your income to Centrelink is changing.

From 7 December 2020 you will now be required to report the gross income your employerpaid you in your reporting period. Prior to 7 December you were required to report the income you earned during the reporting period but were not yet paid.

Gross income is the total income you are paid before tax and other deductions. This is not the amount of income you receive into your bank account. Gross income is the amount of income you earned before tax and deductions, such as HECS payments, are taken out.

You should find this amount on the top of your payslip and it’s normally labelled ‘gross income’.

Remember, if you have a partner, you must also report the gross income they were paid during your reporting period to Centrelink, from 7 December 2020.

The way backpay is assessed will also be changing from 7 December 2020.

If you are paid backpay from your employer, this will now be assessed within the reporting period when you receive it, not the period within which you earned that income.

Does your reporting date fall between 7 and 18 December 2020?

You will need to make a one-off calculation when reporting between 7 December 2020 and 18 December 2020, if:

• you reported earned employment income for a period before 7 December 2020; and
• your employer paid you the income after 7 December 2020.

This is to ensure you do not report the same income twice.

You can find out more about reporting your income if your reporting date falls between 7 December 2020 and 18 December 2020 on the Services Australia website [LINK: https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/individuals/news/does-your-reporting-date-fall-between-7-and-18-december-2020]

If you find this confusing, Services Australia has an online calculator tool [LINK: https://www.centrelink.gov.au/custsite_pfe/pymtfinderest/reiCalculatorPage.jsf?wec-appid=pymtfinderest&wec-locale=en_US#stay] to help you make this calculation.

Want some more information about these changes?

You can find out more about this change, including a full list of payments this change affects, on the Services Australia website. [LINK: https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/individuals/news/reporting-your-employment-income-changing]

Need advice?

If you live in Victoria and would like advice about this change, or have other social security/Centrelink questions, you can call our General Advice Line, Monday – Thursday between 9:30am and 12:30pm on 0419 793 652.

If you live in another state, find your closest social security legal service on the Economic Justice Australia website. [LINK: https://www.ejaustralia.org.au/wp/legal-help-centrelink/]

The impacts of COVID, and the government responses to it, have been felt by all Victorians, but no group more than those reliant on social security.

We have seen first-hand how COVID-19 has affected Victorians, especially those most affected by discrimination and injustice.

Some government measures have been vital in softening the blow of COVID-19 and the economic slowdown, others have not worked as well as they should. While some actions taken by government agencies have improved welfare and access to justice, some are pushing people further into hardship. The Federation of Community Legal Centres has now released A Just and Equitable COVID Recovery – A Community Legal Sector Plan for Victoria

which sets out our recommendations for embedding protections for those members of our community most impacted by disadvantage, discrimination and injustice. You can read the report here.

. In short, a just and equitable recovery must:

• expand and entrench vital protections for financially disadvantaged Victorians
• improve the fairness and resilience of our housing systems
• make sure no workers are left behind in Victoria’s economic rebuild
• embed access to justice for all victim-survivors of family violence and build on best practice legal supports in measures to respond to the ‘shadow pandemic’
• protect the welfare and human rights of people in prison throughout the COVID recovery, and move towards a safer prison system
• protect children and young people impacted by the crisis and keep them out of the justice system

We need to make sure no one gets left behind in the transition to the ‘new normal’.

SSRV and Financial Counselling Victoria have a partnership to deliver the Integrated Services Project . The Year 1 project implementation and evaluation report was recently launched.

Read the report here

SSRV has received funding from the Victorian and Commonwealth Governments to provide legal assistance to people who have been affected by disasters such as bushfires, floods and pandemics.

The following guidelines outline how SSRV is able to assist individuals, primary producers and small business operators.

SSRV Bushfire Legal Assistance Guidelines.

See our Legal Assistance page for more information.