Social Security (Benefit Categories and Work Focus) Amendment Act 2013

  • repealed
  • Social Security (Benefit Categories and Work Focus) Amendment Act 2013: repealed, on 26 November 2018, pursuant to section 455(1) of the Social Security Act 2018 (2018 No 32).
48 Sections 115 and 116A replaced

Replace sections 115 and 116A (section 116A having been inserted on 15 October 2012 by section 43 of the Social Security (Youth Support and Work Focus) Amendment Act 2012) with:

116B Failures to comply with obligations

(1)

The sanctions stated in section 117 must be imposed on a person when any of the following paragraphs applies to the person:

Obligations related to contracted service providers

(a)

the chief executive considers that the person has, without a good and sufficient reason, failed to comply with an obligation under section 60GAG(1) to comply with a requirement under section 60GAG(1)(a) to (d); or

Social obligations of certain beneficiaries with dependent children

(b)

the chief executive considers that the person has, without a good and sufficient reason, failed to comply with a social obligation that the person has under section 60RA(3), and that the person’s failure to comply with that social obligation is a failure in respect of which section 60RC(3) permits the chief executive to impose a sanction under section 117; or

Obligations related to work preparation or to work ability assessment

(c)

the chief executive considers that the person has, without a good and sufficient reason, failed to comply with a general obligation under section 60Q(2) or an obligation under section 60Q(2) to comply with a requirement under section 60Q(3); or

(d)

the chief executive considers that the person has, without a good and sufficient reason, failed to undergo an assessment that the person is required to undergo under section 100B; or

Work test obligations (including drug testing obligations) and work-tested beneficiaries

(e)

the person is a work-tested beneficiary, and the chief executive considers that the person has, without a good and sufficient reason, failed to comply with any of the work test obligations as set out in section 102A (including, without limitation, any drug testing obligations under section 102B(1) that, under section 102A(1A), are included in, and form part of, a work test obligation under section 102A(1)(a), (c), or (f)(ii) or (iv)); or

(f)

the person is required by this paragraph to be treated as a person to whom paragraph (e) applies because the person fails, without good and sufficient reason, to apply for suitable employment that requires candidates to undertake drug tests; or

(g)

the person is required by this paragraph to be treated as a person to whom paragraph (e) applies because the person is a full-time work-tested beneficiary who leaves, without good and sufficient reason, or is dismissed for misconduct from, part-time work or employment averaging less than 15 hours a week; or

(h)

the person is required by this paragraph to be treated as a person to whom paragraph (e) applies because the person is a part-time work-tested beneficiary who leaves, without good and sufficient reason, or is dismissed for misconduct from, employment averaging less than 15 hours a week; or

Interview obligation of beneficiary exempted from work test

(i)

the person is a beneficiary granted an exemption from the work test, and the chief executive considers that the person has, without a good and sufficient reason, failed to attend an interview as required under section 105(5).

(2)

Section 60H(6) and (7) (which relate to dealing with voluntary unemployment or loss of employment through misconduct, etc) apply with all necessary modifications to a person to whom subsection (1)(g) or (h) of this section applies.

(3)

A work-tested beneficiary who indicates that he or she would fail a drug test that an employer would require for an opportunity of suitable employment is for the purposes of subsection (1)(f) taken to be a person who fails, without good and sufficient reason, to apply for suitable employment that requires candidates to undertake drug tests (and therefore to be a person required by subsection (1)(f) to be treated as a person to whom subsection (1)(e) applies).

(4)

Subsection (3) does not limit the generality of subsections (1)(e) and (f).

116C Good and sufficient reasons for specified failures to comply

(1)

A beneficiary has for the purposes of section 116B a good and sufficient reason for not undertaking or completing an activity if—

(a)

doing so was dependent upon the provision by the department of any assistance specified by the department; and

(b)

that assistance was either not supplied, or not supplied to the extent, or in the manner, specified by the department.

(2)

A beneficiary has for the purposes of section 116B a good and sufficient reason for not complying with a drug testing obligation under section 102B(1), or for failing to apply for suitable employment that requires candidates to undertake drug tests, or for both, if the chief executive is satisfied—

(a)

that the person is addicted to, or dependent on, 1 or more controlled drugs; or

(b)

that the person is undertaking treatment—

(i)

for addiction to, or dependence on, 1 or more controlled drugs; and

(ii)

provided by a health practitioner, or other person, who is professionally engaged in the treatment or rehabilitation of people using, or who have used, controlled drugs; and

(iii)

of a kind approved by the chief executive; or

(c)

that the person should be treated as one to whom paragraph (b) applies because he or she is awaiting assessment for, or an opportunity to undertake, treatment of the kind specified in paragraph (b); or

(d)

that, insofar as the person is using a particular controlled drug of a kind the presence of which in the person’s body can be or may be detected by an evidential drug test, that particular controlled drug has been lawfully prescribed, and the person is using only the dosage of that particular controlled drug lawfully prescribed, for the person by a health practitioner; or

(e)

that the person falls within, or the person’s circumstances fall within, another ground or other grounds specified for the purposes of this paragraph by regulations made under section 132.

(3)

A beneficiary who has 1 or more dependent children has for the purposes of section 116B a good and sufficient reason for not participating in or completing any activity required under section 102A(1)(f) if the activity involves participation during hours when it would be unreasonable to expect any dependent child of the person to be without that person’s supervision.

(4)

This section does not limit the generality of section 116B.