Smart, educated and unemployed

Prue Hawkins has a law degree but finds it hard to secure a job. But she's also not eligible for the Disability Support Pension. Source: Supplied

PRUE Hawkins has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Curtin University and a postgraduate law degree from the University of Western Australia.

Sharp, educated and articulate, she worked for Legal Aid in WA for two years but her contract wasn't renewed when budget cuts hit the department at the beginning of the year. But she can't just find another job at the drop of a hat.

Ms Hawkins has osteogenesis imperfecta, otherwise known as Brittle Bone Disease. She's 98 centimetres tall, has broken between 30 and 50 bones in her body and gets around in a wheelchair.

From the time when Ms Hawkins was 16 to when she landed her first full time gig at 28, she was on the Disability Support Pension (DSP). But when she lost her job earlier this year, Ms Hawkins was told by the government she was no longer eligible for the DSP because she had held a job for the past two years and was likely to get another one in the next two years.

So instead, the government placed her on the Newstart allowance, which at $510 a fortnight, is $256 less than the $766 the DSP provides. Over two years, the gap grows to $13,312.

"I was rejected [for the DSP] in February because I hadn't obtained enough points on the impairment table," Ms Hawkins told news.com.au. "I went to the media about it back then and then the government said they would review my case but only because I had gone public with it.

"They interviewed me again and said because it was foreseeable that I would land another job in the next two years, I still wasn't eligible. They said because I had worked before, I should be able to work again. I had no idea what to say."

Tonight's Insight will look at work and disability. Source: Supplied

For Ms Hawkins, finding suitable employment is incredibly difficult. Even for jobs in her field, she can only work in firms which are wheelchair accessible or made the effort to retrofit their offices.

"I have every intention to go back to work and I'm desperate to get another job. But it's not that easy. I live within walking distance of cafes, bars and shops but I can't just take a job in those places. My wheelchair won't even fit. The pool of available work for someone in my position is a lot smaller."

Ms Hawkins said she has significantly higher costs of living because of her disability. For example, her car recently gave out and she will need a new one. But a car modified for her disability will cost $90,000.

The other issue for Ms Hawkins is that under Newstart, she has to participate in mandatory training and jobseeking activities for people under 35-years old.

"There's no point in me applying for jobs stacking shelves," she said.

But luckily for Ms Hawkins, she has been volunteering for the chief judge of the family court in Perth, assisting him and his associates with research. The government has been willing to count that as 'training' under Newstart. But if that were to change, she would be subjected to the onerous requirements of Newstart despite her disability.

Ms Hawkins said the legal employment market in WA is very soft, especially as there is a hiring freeze in the public sector, and she's not sure when she would be able to secure another job.

"The money I get now [on Newstart] barely covers my rent," she said. "I'm lucky that I was born into a family who can support me financially but no everyone is in that position. This is how people end up losing their homes and out on the streets."

Suzanne Colbert is the chief executive of Australian Network on Disability. She works with private and public sector organisations in gaining the confidence to hire people with disabilities.

She said: "Thinking about people with Prue's situation, clearly there are barriers in some workplaces. The kinds of jobs someone like Prue can get are minuscule. It would be fairer if there is a payment for people with a permanent disability that their unemployment benefit is consistent with the disability benefit."

Ms Hawkins said: "I would like to see a process put in place where not every single person with a disability is treated with a rubber stamp — even someone with the same disability as me will have different needs. There should be an appeals process with discretionary powers that can say a previous decision wasn't fair and equitable and that individual factors should be taken into account."

Ms Hawkins and Ms Colbert will both appear tonight on SBS' Insight program which looks at jobs and disabilities. The issue is again in the headlines because of interim recommendations from the McClure Welfare Review commissioned by the Coalition government.

At the time of its release, the federal Minister for Social Services Kevin Andrews said the current system was unwieldy and should be streamlined. He said: "My concern is that for too long, many people get on to a DSP and then government tends to forget about them.

"We are not looking to make anyone worse off but we are looking to a system that is efficient and sustainable."

However, the review's recommendations has been criticised by many in the community services and charity sector, including Mission Australia. The recommendations included trimming the system to just four different kinds of payments which should only be paid to people with a permanent disability and no capacity to work.

Also appearing on tonight's episode of Insight is Bryson Douglas, a 23-year old man from Newcastle in New South Wales.

Mr Douglas was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when he was two, obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety when he 10 and depression when he 16. He finished high school and got one year of undergraduate law at university under his belt before he became overwhelmed with his studies.

He has received the DSP since he was 19 but originally hadn't wanted it because of the "stigma associated with having a disability and being on welfare", he said. "No one wants to be on welfare. I feel sad that I can't work."

Bryson Douglas would like the rhetoric around disability and work to be more positive. Source: Supplied

Mr Douglas said his cerebral palsy and anxiety makes it hard for him to keep a routine and it's practical considerations like that which hamper his ability to maintain a job. He said the self-doubt and fear about whether or not an employer will want him is one of the overriding things holding him back.

Mr Douglas said that another factor which complicates the process for him is he is transgender. "It adds another layer for me," he said. "When you look at people with a disability, it's not the only hurdle they have; it's on top of everything else everyone already struggles with. It's hard enough as it is for people to find a job without a disability."

Mr Douglas also said he's concerned about the broader context in how disability and welfare is talked about.

"I would like to see the rhetoric around welfare and working change. We could be talking about it in a more positive way that's not saying people with disabilities are just lazy and a drain on public money. We should be talking about how great it is we have a system and a country that helps people instead of making it about saving money.

"While we need to protect the economy, there are other ways we can save money that's not necessarily short-changing people like me. If people with disabilities are off benefits then that could spiral which could end up as a bigger cost if they end up in hospital.

"It's not just a disability issue or an employment issue. It's an Australian issue and it worries me that these budget cuts are hitting the most vulnerable people."

SBS Insight is on tonight at 8:30pm.

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