Un(der)employed People's Movement
against Poverty Inc.

PO BOX 485
Brooklyn Park SA 5032

Phone:(08) 8352 4950         Fax: (08) 8346 9288

E-mail: mobak@ozemail.com.au

What you will find in this booklet:

If you

• have been breached as a result of your job search
• are repaying debts you feel may not be quite right
• have applied for a Centrelink benefit or allowance and have been refused

this booklet is for you!

It outlines the procedure from your first contact with Centrelink to the Admininstrative Appeals Tribunal After the decision of the Tribunal you may appeal to the Federal or High Court, a process which is not covered in this booklet.

Contact your Community Legal Centre for more information

Content:

First steps in the appeals process

Types of breaches

When you appeal...

Appeals process overview

The ODM and ARO

The SSAT

The AAT

Info about Freedom of Information

Contents of our latest newsletter

Up-Words Vol.3 No 1

Contents:

35 hour week or share Argentina's destiny?

Human Rights Day - do we count too?

State Election Issue
No 1: Jobs

My experiences with my Job Network Provider

Insert in this issue:
War against Terrorism - the Police State Agenda
can be found at:
http://www.newdawnmagazine.com/
articles/War_on_Terror_
The_Police_State_Agenda.html

Take a look at this month's additions to the Sleuth 

Click here to access our  previous newsletters:

 UpWords 1 No. 1:
 What is Breaching

 UpWords 1 No. 2:
 Young Poor under Attack

 UpWords 1 No. 3:
 Frog Boiling;

 UpWords1 No. 4::
 Welfare Reform;

 UpWords1 No. 5:
 S11;

 UpWords1 No. 6:
 History of Unemployed Movements,
 Homelessness

 Up-Words No. 7:
 Launch of UPM/Latest Breaching  Statistics

 UpWords1 No 8:
 Open Letter to Minister Amanda  Vanstone

 UpWords2 No 1:
  Millionaires' Coup for Govenrment
 Centrelink Officiouisness hurts us  all

 UpWords2 No 2:
  Big Brother is watching you!
  Work for the Dole is not working

 UpWords2 No 3:
 Globalisation - the Excessive   Wealth Disease?

 UpWords2 No 4:
 Is Howard a Communist?
 Mal Brough, Minister for  Compassionate Employment  Figure Fudging

 UpWords2 No 5
 Benefits 37% below poverty line
 May Day protests worldwide

UpWords2 No 6:
The Permanently Alienated Underclass Speaks UP!
The Budget for the Unemployed
Views from the Coal Face

UpWords 2 No 7
Criminalisation of Poverty
Job Network is not working - from rorts to incompetence

UpWords 2 No 8 
Work for the Dole can kill!
National Coalition against Poverty Petition
Post card campaign
Poet's Corner:
Views on Unemployment

UpWords 2 No 9 
UPM joins Ranks for Peace
International Day for the
Eradication of Poverty
Unemployed Treated Worse Than Criminals!

UpWords 2 No 10
Election 2001: UPM's How to Vote Card
Annual General Meeting
How much longer?

Up-Words Vol. 2 No 11
Not Drowning - Just Looking for Work
Election Aftermath: ALP Awake!
Human Rights Day Picnic
AGM

Up-Words Home

Come to our Meetings
on the last Tuesday of the month,
5:30 – 7 pm
at the World's End
Hindley Street West, Adelaide.

Join UPM against Poverty
as a member!

Copy the membership form here!

PO Box 485
Brooklyn Park SA 5032

Phone (08) 8352 4950

UPM against Poverty Inc. meets every last Tuesday of the month at the WorldsEnd, Hindley Street West in Adelaide

Join us, but call if you want to attend to make sure that the venue is available!

Trouble with your Centrelink Payments?

Information about your Social Security Payments
and what to do when they don't come

February 2002

For more information and assistance with Centrelink payments and decisions see the website of the National Welfare Rights Centre at http://www.welfarerights.org.au/ (note you will exit this site. Come back with the back arrow on your browser.)

If you want to order the booklet see our order form

If you are someone working with people who might make use of the booklet, read this letter

Trouble getting your Centrelink payments?

There are three areas of trouble with getting payments. You may have

• been excluded from getting a payment when you applied;
• had your payments reduced or stopped because you made a mistake, or at least Centrelink thinks so;
• to repay debts which have come as a result of alleged overpayments for one reason or another.

In all of these cases you can appeal the decision, even if it is a while ago that the decision was made. You may not get all your money back if the decision has been made more than three months ago.

Generally, if you have been breached because you missed an
appointment, did not get a letter, or were unwilling to sign an activity agreement, have trouble with Work-for-the-Dole providers or Job Network Providers:
Appeal against it immediately!

• If you have been precluded and believe the decision is not right,
• if you have applied for a Disability Pension and got rejected,
• if you feel you are repaying debts you should not need to repay or if you have been accused of living in a de-facto relationship but don't:

Appeal against the decision!

Call Welfare Rights Centre SA under 8226 4123
or for country callers: 1800 246 287 and ask for advice!

Or call UPM against Poverty on 8352 4950, we may be able to assist you further.

Get advice where possible, you do not need to fight this on your own.

First Steps in the Appeals Process:
Once you have contacted someone you will need to get all the evidence you can, which shows, that Centrelink's decision was incorrect in some way. Welfare Rights Centre SA provides an advocate for you who will assist you in all the following steps.

If you do not want to ask anyone for help, you have to prepare your argument yourself. Think about the points you believe are incorrect. Formulate your argument and see if you can get statements, letters or other evidence to back your argument.

Take all your paperwork and go to your Centrelink Office. Tell them that you want to appeal against their decision and that you want the Original Decision Maker (ODM) to review his/her decision. Be nice and polite at all times, but insist, that your case be looked at as soon as possible.

Fill in their form for the appeal. If you feel unsure about what to put in the form, ask for a phone to call Welfare Rights Centre SA (8226 4123) and confirm that what you have written in the form is ok.

If you have been breached a third time, which means your normal payments are withheld completely for eight weeks, you can ask the Secretary of the Department to continue your payments until your case has been reviewed.

Hand them the letter which is attached in the centre of this booklet. Fill in the form called: "Application for continuation of payments pending review". If they say, that this is not possible, point them to the legislation which is printed on the bottom of the form.

There is no guarantee that your payments will be reinstated in full, it is up to the discretion of the Secretary of the Department for Family and Community Services in SA. They can decide against it and don't even need a reason. However, the more people try, the greater the pressure to change the policy of punishing before all evidence is heard. So give it a try, but do not get your hopes up too high.

Reasons to continue your payments while your appeal is reviewed include extreme financial hardship, obligations like looking after your ailing parents, and special circumstances such as sudden illness or sudden financial obligations.

Types of Breaches

There are two kinds of breaches:

Activity Test breaches come mainly from failing to fulfil mutual obligation requirements when looking for work,

administrative breaches arise from not declaring income, not returning forms or not attending interviews.

The penalties for both kind of breaches involve a reduction in the rate of payment. The following table shows an overview over the breaches.

You should appeal when you first learn that you have been breached or had your payments cut.

Appealing a Centrelink decision is free of charge, as are the advocacy services offered by Welfare Rights Centre SA, Phone: (08) 8226 4123. Or call your local Welfare Rights Centre in your State!

You will find an application to review a Centrelink decision at the end of this booklet. You will also find an application for the continuation of your payments pending the outcome of your review. This application is based on sections 132 and 145 of the Social Security Administration Act 1999.

Both these applications should be filled in and taken to your local Centrelink Office. Make sure that the Centrelink Officer records the receipt of your application in your file on the computer.

Continuation of payments during review have rarely been granted in South Australia, whether you get your payments continued or not depends on your financial situation and other hardship circumstances. The decision is entirely up to the discretion of the Secretary of the Department.

Be persistant in wanting your payments, the appeal can take up to three months to resolve. Yet don't get your hopes up too high, you may not get your payments restored. Even if your payments are continued, should you loose your appeal, the penalties will be implemented and you will lose the money from the date of the final review decision.

The Appeals Process - Overview

Was Centrelink unfair in their decision to cut or reject your application for payments? Appeal against it!

Go back to your Centrelink Office and ask for the

Original Decision Maker (ODM) to review the decision.

If the ODM reverses the decision - be happy, you'll get your benefits

If the ODM does not reverse decision

Appeal to the Authorised Review Officer (ARO)

The ARO reverses the Decision - be happy, you'll get your benefits soon!

The ARO does not reverse the decision:

Appeal to the Social Security Appeals Tribunal (SSAT)

The SSAT overturns Centrelink's Decision: Centrelink may appeal to the Administrative Review Tribunal (AAT) and now is the time to contact Welfare Rights Centre SA.

The SSAT overturns Centrelink's decision and they do not appeal - be happy you will get your benefits soon!

The SSAT does not overturn Centrelink's decision:

Appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT)

If the AAT does not overturn Centrelink's decision you can only appeal to the Federal or High Court. Contact your Community Legal Centre for more information.

The Original Decision Maker and the
Authorised Review Officer

After you have put your appeals form in to Centrelink, the Original Decision Maker (ODM) should have a talk with you about your appeal. Explain it as good as you can, do not give any other information other than what is relevant to your appeal. You have the right to take an advocate with you to any meeting, if you feel unable to cope or think you may get angry. Once the ODM has made his/her decision, you will receive a letter.

If the ODM does not reverse the decision, immediately ask for an Authorised Review Officer (ARO) to review the decision or the part you don't agree with. You can ask for this review by phone or by writing a short letter, which should contain:
Your Name, Address, Date, Date of decision, date of review, no of review. State that you have appealed and the decision has been reviewed by the ODM. You are now asking for the review of an ARO. Add that you are happy for the ARO to contact you, so that you can clarify your position and ask them to respond to you as soon as possible. Tell them when and where and how you are available during business hours

If you are represented by the Welfare Rights Centre your advocate can apply on your behalf to initiate the review by the ARO.

The ARO may contact you for your version of the events. S/he will hand down her decision in written form and will make mention of the relevant sections of the Social Security Act 1991 or any other relevant legislation.

If your appeal has been unsuccessful with the ARO you can initiate the appeal to the Social Security Appeals Tribunal. If you have not contacted Welfare Rights Centre or any other Community Legal Centre so far, we recommend you do so now as they can represent you and at least assist you in the process.

Make sure to contact the SSAT as soon as possible after you have received the ARO's decision. Call the SSAT on 8212 3526 or 1800 011 140 or log on to their web site: http://www.ssat.gov.au

After you have put your appeals form in to Centrelink, the Original Decision Maker (ODM) should have a talk with you about your appeal. Explain it as good as you can, do not give any other information other than what is relevant to your appeal. You have the right to take an advocate with you to any meeting, if you feel unable to cope or think you may get angry. Once the ODM has made his/her decision, you will receive a letter.

If the ODM does not reverse the decision, immediately ask for an Authorised Review Officer (ARO) to review the decision or the part you don't agree with. You can ask for this review by phone or by writing a short letter, which should contain:

• Your Name,
• Address,
• Date,
• Date of decision,
• date of review,
• no of review.

State that you have appealed and the decision has been reviewed by the ODM. You are now asking for the review of an ARO. Add that you are happy for the ARO to contact you, so that you can clarify your position and ask them to respond to you as soon as possible. Tell them when and where and how you are available during business hours

If you are represented by the Welfare Rights Centre your advocate can apply on your behalf to initiate the review by the ARO.

The ARO may contact you for your version of the events. S/he will hand down her decision in written form and will make mention of the relevant sections of the Social Security Act 1991 or any other relevant legislation.

If your appeal has been unsuccessful with the ARO you can initiate the appeal to the Social Security Appeals Tribunal. If you have not contacted Welfare Rights Centre or any other Community Legal Centre so far, we recommend you do so now as they can represent you and at least assist you in the process.

Make sure to contact the SSAT as soon as possible after you have received the ARO's decision. Call the SSAT on 8212 3526 or 1800 011 140 or log on to their web site: http://www.ssat.gov.au

The Social Security Appeals Tribunal (SSAT)

Once you've got the ARO's decision back and you are still not happy with the results, you can go to the SSAT. It may take some time to get a hearing date, but if you experience financial hardship you can ask the Tribunal to hear your case sooner than later.

The Social Security Appeals Tribunal is completely independent from Centrelink. It reviews Centrelink's decisions and your appeal. There are between one and three members on the Tribunal and they come from a wide and varied background. They look for the 'whole story' and will listen to all your arguments thoroughly. Their decisions are based on the Social Security Act.

Centrelink itself cannot appear in the SSAT, but it submits all the evidence and the decisions of the Authorised Review Officer and the Original Decision Maker. The SSAT has the authority to overturn Centrelink's decisions.

You will receive a bundle of paper work before the hearing. These are the documents Centrelink and other organisations associated with your case have produced and submitted as evidence.

Again, you can represent yourself but you are better off asking your local Welfare Rights Centre for help. You can, (don't have to!) prepare a written submission. That will enable the Tribunal members to read through your point of view before the hearing and they can then prepare their questions based on what you have told them.

A submission should contain a

• brief summary of why Centrelink made the decision, what you want to appeal against and very briefly why;
• what you think the outcome should be;
• a few paragraphs about the history of events in a factual way;
• your more thorough argument,
• finishing with what you think would be a fair decision.

Be prepared to be questioned at the hearing. Should your appeal win, Centrelink has 28 days to appeal against the decision. If you lost your appeal at the SSAT you can still go on to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal Process

This is the final step that can be taken before entering the legal system and applying for the Courts to assist.

After your appeal has been rejected by the Social Security Appeals Tribunal (SSAT), or in cases where the SSAT gave you right but Centrelink appealed against the decision, your case moves on to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).

If you want an advocate from anywhere, Community Legal Centre or Welfare Rights Centre SA, you must first apply to the Legal Services Commission. It will not cost you anything.

If you are working with Welfare Rights Centre advocates they will make a submission on your behalf. If you are on your own it would help if you can get some advice. At least call UPM against Poverty and we may be able to prepare you for the Tribunal (no guarantees for success though!)

The AAT is headed by a member of the Tribunal who checks if the procedures used by Centrelink and the review bodies has been correct. If they deem that it was incorrect at any point the AAT can order Centrelink to change the decision or recalculate your debt, for example, or declare a decision in your favor.

The AAT is very legalistic and pays a lot of attention to procedure and the legislation. Centrelink usually uses a lawyer for the AAT and if you win, your case may become a precedent, opening the door for other people to claim the same rights. Therefore Centrelink is very concerned that you do not win. Preparation is crucial here and we recommend a well experienced advocate (lawyer) who can be accessed free by all the Welfare Rights Centres around Australia.

Your case can also be heard in some regional areas and Welfare Rights Centre has the means to communicate with you, even if you cannot come to Adelaide. Country callers can ring 1800 246 287!

Info about Freedom of Information

Commonwealth Freedom of Information Act: (FOI)
This Act regulates that Commonwealth Government departments have to provide a copy of your file. It may include paper, computer disks or tapes, microfilm, photographs, video and audio tapes and any other storage media.

You have the right to change or remove completely any negative statements or untruths from the documents and Centrelink will have to comply by law. Centrelink requires a completed FOI statement form and it helps to include a letter, further outlining any relevant details. You can get the form from Centrelink or the Welfare Rights Centre SA.

It usually takes about a month before you will receive the documents so if you think you may need them to defend your case, ask for the FOI form as soon as you start your appeal. Don't expect everything though as some files may be withheld from publication. This happens if they think that someone's personal details may be exposed, whose information was supposed to remain confidential.

Adelaide's Centrelink FOI may list any documents not supplied. You can try a Review under the Freedom of Information Act saying you require the information for a proposed Tribunal appearance. If the information requested infringes someone else's privacy, request that the names and addresses be simply blanked out.

Subsequent FOI appeals will be reviewed by the AAT. You would be wise to ask a lawyer or Welfare Rights Centre Advocate to assist you with the hearing.

State Government Freedom of Information Acts:
Useful if Centrelink decisions are based on a report by a state government department such as the Department of Education. Should the State Freedom of Information Act fail, then you can ask the State Ombudsman to investigate.

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