Politics Centrelink

[Little Big John]

Geez aren't I glad I bypassed NSA straight through to the DSP, just like how 1 & 2 go straight to the preliminary final.

Throw in a few delivery jobs a couple of days a week + solid, consistent results on the punt all the while living with mum and getting away with **** all board and yep I'm on a pretty good wicket while y'all have to go to work everyday.

 

[skilts]

WTF does Centrelink even mean? Methinks the name change was yet another method devised to dissuade people from contacting these services, along with reducing staff, so callers have to wait two hours on the phone. The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre changed its name to The Melbourne Exhibition and Convention centre, obviously because too many people knew who they were, and might be likely to want to contact them, and horror of horrors, give them some money. After all, it's an Australian business.

 

[skilts]

This reminds me of the Leunig cartoon from many years ago, in which he had a mythical rich man responding to a poor person who asked, "How do you sleep at night?"

Rich man: I sleep at night between silk sheets on a heated, king size auto-massage water bed with piped music in a very quiet street …with a companion whose beauty would make you weep with desire …

 

[Little Big John]

WTF does Centrelink even mean? Methinks the name change was yet another method devised to dissuade people from contacting these services, along with reducing staff, so callers have to wait two hours on the phone.

7 hours and 43 minutes is my personal record.

 

[ShanDog]

7 hours and 43 minutes is my personal record.

My favourite is when you call at 3pm, are on hold until the office closes, and they just disconnect the call.

Having said that, other that re-filling in the same damn forms that ask the same damn questions over and over again just to get a different issue sorted (seriously... DATA-****ING-BASE. USE ONE PROPERLY FFS), I've had very little issue with centreline. Since I left full time employment to study and had a family, I've had plenty to do with them. On the whole, got there with minimal fuss.

 

[Schism]

Centrelink is designed specifically to discourage people, imo; they want some people, particularly the unemployed, to give up.

I'm fortunate that I only ever had to go in once for unemployment benefits, between university and work; it was a depressing place and after four weeks, I found work and never went back. My wife has had to apply for maternity leave and childcare benefits recently and it's still a nightmare.

of course it is

they did their business community mates a favour though by adding an extra layer of taxpayer funded handouts in using the privately owned job networks/agencies that do most of the work centrelink once did. Billions of dollars in contracts to have a few people sit around in a dodgy offices and pretend to work. In reality all they do is wait for an employer to put an ad up and then go "hey look a job popped up, you can apply for that"

 

[fleabitten]

of course it is

they did their business community mates a favour though by adding an extra layer of taxpayer funded handouts in using the privately owned job networks/agencies that do most of the work centrelink once did. Billions of dollars in contracts to have a few people sit around in a dodgy offices and pretend to work. In reality all they do is wait for an employer to put an ad up and then go "hey look a job popped up, you can apply for that"

Many of them don't even do that. I was in and out of different part-time jobs while single parenting and over the years had to deal with several different agencies. I was eager to work and clearly a much brighter spark than most of the other people buzzing around the office, but I think I only ever had one referral to a job and that fell through before we got to the interview. I always found my own new jobs. Pretty sure they would have claimed some kind of bonus when I re-entered the workforce each time as well.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

Many of them don't even do that. I was in and out of different part-time jobs while single parenting and over the years had to deal with several different agencies. I was eager to work and clearly a much brighter spark than most of the other people buzzing around the office, but I think I only ever had one referral to a job and that fell through before we got to the interview. I always found my own new jobs. Pretty sure they would have claimed some kind of bonus when I re-entered the workforce each time as well.

No doubt they sent you out a form to fill in about each new job, they then use that as evidence to claim their bonuses.

 

[skilts]

of course it is

they did their business community mates a favour though by adding an extra layer of taxpayer funded handouts in using the privately owned job networks/agencies that do most of the work centrelink once did. Billions of dollars in contracts to have a few people sit around in a dodgy offices and pretend to work. In reality all they do is wait for an employer to put an ad up and then go "hey look a job popped up, you can apply for that"

This is the most egregious rort I've ever come across. Not all crooks are in gaol, or in parliament.

 

[little graham]

When you know what can be done to your centerlink file and there's nothing you can do about it, unless you have cash to pay a lawyer. You find out it is actually a control system.

 

[Bomberboyokay]

Geez aren't I glad I bypassed NSA straight through to the DSP, just like how 1 & 2 go straight to the preliminary final.

Throw in a few delivery jobs a couple of days a week + solid, consistent results on the punt all the while living with mum and getting away with **** all board and yep I'm on a pretty good wicket while y'all have to go to work everyday.

Every gambler on BigFooty is good at it. Funny that.

 

[ShanDog]

When you know what can be done to your centerlink file and there's nothing you can do about it, unless you have cash to pay a lawyer. You find out it is actually a control system.

Not to mention those chips they put in your brain to listen to your thoughts... WAKE UP SHEEPLE!

 

[Farm Boy]

Every gambler on BigFooty is good at it. Funny that.

I think he was just trolling. We all know Cash is King is a mug punter. He still lives with his Mum for a reason.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

Every gambler on BigFooty is good at it. Funny that.

That's because we all follow Roby's gambling tips.

 

[Dry Rot]

Best one was the Centrelink worker telling me to get a chicken boning job. Anyone who has seen me cutting will attest to my skills with a knife or sharp implement. Special mention to the Centrelink worker who told me to get another call centre job despite my psychologist at the time telling me not to take another battery hen job as the ongoing complaints and inability to help people do my head in. That's another story for call centre / customer service thread though (should name it Customer Dissatisfaction Department). Again it's the system and not the individual consultants in most cases.

Probably the one that takes the cake though was Centrelink encouraging me to take sickies from my pt job to attend interviews for call centre work.

Was all that Centrelink or the Job Network provider?

 

[skilts]

That's another story for call centre / customer service thread though (should name it Customer Dissatisfaction Department).

A mate of mine is currently writing a book with the title, Customer Abuse. He has encountered no shortage of material. Personally, I attribute a lot of this to a diminution in the emphasis on clerical skills. How often do you have to make multiple calls, to various organisations, because people never do what they say they will? This is because they either don't care, or they (or their managers) have developed no system to deal with the minutiae of their jobs. They remind me of some breeds of dogs, in that every day is a new experience, as if yesterday never happened.

 

[rdhopkins2]

A mate of mine is currently writing a book with the title, Customer Abuse. He has encountered no shortage of material. Personally, I attribute a lot of this to a diminution in the emphasis on clerical skills. How often do you have to make multiple calls, to various organisations, because people never do what they say they will? This is because they either don't care, or they (or their managers) have developed no system to deal with the minutiae of their jobs. They remind me of some breeds of dogs, in that every day is a new experience, as if yesterday never happened.

Many reasons.
Companies more interested in sales than service.
Red tape / policy
Average Handling Time (AHT) for calls. Shorter the call the better.
Adherence to Schedule. If you call 5 mins before a consultant is due to go on lunch, expect to be handballed. Essentially their manager will be asking why their adherence is out if they take proper care of your call. Stats are greater than resolutions in a call centre. More likely to be counselled over stats than not resolving a call. Sad but true.

Essentially call centre consultants are bound by targets, stats and company policy. They most likely want to help you but can't due to one of the above.

 

[rdhopkins2]

Was all that Centrelink or the Job Network provider?

CL. My latest JNP tried harder but still left a lot to be desired.

 

[skilts]

Many reasons.
Companies more interested in sales than service.
Red tape / policy
Average Handling Time (AHT) for calls. Shorter the call the better.
Adherence to Schedule. If you call 5 mins before a consultant is due to go on lunch, expect to be handballed. Essentially their manager will be asking why their adherence is out if they take proper care of your call. Stats are greater than resolutions in a call centre. More likely to be counselled over stats than not resolving a call. Sad but true.

Essentially call centre consultants are bound by targets, stats and company policy. They most likely want to help you but can't due to one of the above.

Yeh, one of the jobs I had involved outgoing calls trying to self-sell their homes. I think it was the second call centre ever in Melbourne. I'm aware of the ghastly way call centre operators are treated. A mate has been doing it for various organisations over the past twenty-five years. The lack of action on promises extends to people who work in other than call centres. Sales reps and shop assistants are among those who also have devised no system to allows them fulfill their promises.

Having spent 40 years on the road as a rep., to the building industry, I'm occasionally asked for advise from young 'uns. I only tell them two things: Your integrity is what you're selling; Always do what you say you will, but if you are unable to do this, tell the customer before they find out from someone else, or when what you promised doesn't happen. My manager in the last job I had before retirement upbraided me for being, "too honest". It seemed my time had passed.

 

[Cash is King]

Every gambler on BigFooty is good at it. Funny that.

The results speak for themselves. Given that I don't rely on it solely for a living, I am not pressured to make a play on a game I'm only 50/50 on and merely use the punt for pocket money.

Most sheep in this country hear the word gambling and automatically think "bad" or "lower" without being informed. They only hear about the muggs that lose everything but are too brainwashed to realise that with everything, success can be earnt with time and effort. But you guys are too thick to see that in this country and just decide to ban things weely Neely. Like I said, you're all sheep I tells ya. All sheep!!! Baaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!

 

[Cash is King]

I think he was just trolling. We all know Cash is King is a mug punter. He still lives with his Mum for a reason.

Wouldn't have it any other way. Why would I wanna be responsible for an entire household as a single man and be owned by a bank when I can get away with **** all expenses living in a nice area? Doesn't make sense, does it?

At the end of the day, I manage to save quite a bit of money with little effort required whereas you probably have to battle away to make ends meet.

 

[Father Jack]

I once tried to organise Austudy for an online course, the call centre Centrelink flunky told me I had to come into the office (which is two hours away) to sign some form or another, i asked if I could just do it at the local Service Tas office, they said no I had to do it in the office in person. I persisted, but they were adamant.

So I went all the way to Launceston, waited for 45 mins or so and when I finally got called up the bloke frowned and asked why I bothered driving all this way when I could have done it all at my local Service Tas office. So a four hour round trip for nothing because someone couldn't be bothered to spend five minutes doing their job and looking up information that they clearly didn't know.

 

[madmug]

I once tried to organise Austudy for an online course, the call centre Centrelink flunky told me I had to come into the office (which is two hours away) to sign some form or another, i asked if I could just do it at the local Service Tas office, they said no I had to do it in the office in person. I persisted, but they were adamant.

So I went all the way to Launceston, waited for 45 mins or so and when I finally got called up the bloke frowned and asked why I bothered driving all this way when I could have done it all at my local Service Tas office. So a four hour round trip for nothing because someone couldn't be bothered to spend five minutes doing their job and looking up information that they clearly didn't know.

Its like trying to deal with local councils, banks, insurance offices. They live in an unaccountable bureaucratic world. Most would never get a real job.

 

[Maggie5]

Was out with family last night and two of my nieces who work for Centrelink were saying that they haven't had a pay increase for 4 years, staff cuts, morale is down. Constant changes to regulations and poor computer systems and they have now been given targets and are constantly monitored to achieve.
Don't be too hard on them.

https://www.theguardian.com/austral...ut&utm_term=191805&subid=18935290&CMP=ema_632

As an aside read the above article re privatisation of government services and found this piece interesting:

"Employment services, which the Howard government turned into a competitive market 20 years ago, are often held up as a successful case study. But successive studies have shown this has been most successful in getting jobs for unemployed people who are pretty well placed to get jobs anyway, and least successful for the most disadvantaged job seekers, who regularly report receiving extremely poor services."

Oh how true.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

Was out with family last night and two of my nieces who work for Centrelink were saying that they haven't had a pay increase for 4 years, staff cuts, morale is down. Constant changes to regulations and poor computer systems and they have now been given targets and are constantly monitored to achieve.
Don't be too hard on them.

https://www.theguardian.com/austral...ut&utm_term=191805&subid=18935290&CMP=ema_632

As an aside read the above article re privatisation of government services and found this piece interesting:

"Employment services, which the Howard government turned into a competitive market 20 years ago, are often held up as a successful case study. But successive studies have shown this has been most successful in getting jobs for unemployed people who are pretty well placed to get jobs anyway, and least successful for the most disadvantaged job seekers, who regularly report receiving extremely poor services."

Oh how true.

A lot of the APS haven't had a pay increase for a long time, management are somewhat hamstrung by government in what they are allowed to offer. Not just in terms of increase, but it seems to be other conditions are being wound back. Things like flexibility of part-time arrangements, including parents returning to work, etc seem to be big stumbling blocks. Perhaps even bigger than a below CPI increase (depending on how it is viewed, just above from the day an agreement is signed but below since the first offer was put) for most people outside the very high end.

As for the "poor" computer systems. They are old, and not many people under their mid-40s are used to being confronted with a green screen. There are definitely legacy issues that make certain things complex, the worst of which were addressed a few years back according to the rumour mill.
But the SAP replacement is, from what I've heard from people on both the SAP and existing M204 systems, not looking any better in terms of accuracy or throughput. The M204 system is actually quite good at its job, though without a modern look and feel.
Of course the new SAP system will have the up to date interface, and probably be easier for new starters. It should prove better for users, though whether it is worth the reported $2b dollars is another matter.

The problem CIO is apparently a SAPaholic and things are rolled out before they are ready. The debacle with student processing is likely to be the first of many where the mainframe systems get turned off in favour of SAP, before the new system is up to the task.