Comments for The Housing Connection http://thc.org.au Disabled Employment & Disabled Accomodation Thu, 16 Feb 2012 07:11:35 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Comment on Establishment of Disabled Housing NSW by thehousingconnection http://thc.org.au/2012/establishment-of-disabled-housing-nsw/#comment-250 thehousingconnection Thu, 16 Feb 2012 07:11:35 +0000 http://thc.org.au/?p=657#comment-250 Hi Wendy, Please contact The Housing COnnection directly via email or by phone, or even visit the centre. You can find more contact details here: http://thc.org.au/contact/ Hi Wendy,

Please contact The Housing COnnection directly via email or by phone, or even visit the centre.
You can find more contact details here: http://thc.org.au/contact/

]]> Comment on Establishment of Disabled Housing NSW by wendy wilson http://thc.org.au/2012/establishment-of-disabled-housing-nsw/#comment-246 wendy wilson Tue, 14 Feb 2012 11:28:03 +0000 http://thc.org.au/?p=657#comment-246 im enquiring about housing for my brother please can you let me know some information on it thank you wendy wilson im enquiring about housing for my brother please can you let me know some information on it thank you wendy wilson

]]> Comment on People with Disability Share Their Experience of Life Transitions by Ian Somerville http://thc.org.au/2011/people-with-disability-share-their-experience-of-life-transitions/#comment-17 Ian Somerville Fri, 30 Dec 2011 09:29:18 +0000 http://thc.org.au/?p=550#comment-17 PROBLEM: Government is increasing the pension age and states they want to get older Australians back in the workforce.As a retiree of 68 years of age with a slight disability there is currently NO support facility to help me get work unless I am between the ages of 14 and 65. I feel this needs urgent attention by the Minister,DEEWR and Centrelink. I have been refused any assistance to get work from Vocational Rehabilitation Providers (which were given to me by the manager at centrelink Chatswood).I have also been refused by centrelink to transfer me to the "Standard Job Network" who can provide Vocational Rehabilitation Assistance if Centrelink transfer me to one of these providers. A little complicated but essentially there is NO HELP IF YOU ARE OVER 65 !!! My wife has recently recovered from a stroke and is on debilitating and draining medication to reduce her platelet levels and she has extremely low white blood cell count.Centrelink have stopped providing her with Newstart Allowance despite doctors advice she is unfit to work and offered her nothing.I am supporting my son who is in year 12 at High School and wants to go to university.I want to work to get off the pension and support the needs of my family but there is NO HELP AT ALL. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- History of mail to Minister Kate Ellis. Tuesday, 6 December 2011 10:38 AM "Dear Minister I am a retiree on the aged pension at 68 years of age.I have a slight disability that restricts my walking and standing capacity due to an injury I sustained to my legs in 1989.I was forced to retire in 2009 as I developed very limited capacity to stand and walk.I have attended the Pain Clinic at the RNS Hospital in St Leonard's and underwent a spinal transplant.This failed to produce any improvement. Through Centerlink aged pension division,I was referred to one of their "disability providers".I attended a registration interview for 2 hours,provided my resume,had a great discussion and completed a work plan on their database.Great support it seemed. After I had returned home I had a phone call advising that I had wasted my time as the system had rejected my at the final stage.It seems that this service is only for those in my circumstances who are 14-65 years of age and no older.Given that your policy is to lift the age pension retirement age to 67 or 68 and the ALP are all about creating jobs and getting older people back in the work force why does your policy cut off support at age 65 ? This would hardly seem consistent with your current policy or any future policy to raise the retirement age with an ageing population.Can you please help me overcome this frustrating barrier" ? Response: On 13/12/2011, at 5:22 PM, Minister Ellis wrote: Thank you for your correspondence to the Minister for Employment Participation and Childcare, Minister for the Status of Women, the Hon Kate Ellis MP. The Minister values your correspondence and we will respond to your enquiry in due course. Thank you for writing to the Minister about this issue. Regards Office of the Hon Kate Ellis MP Minister for Employment Participation and Child Care, Minister for the Status of Women Federal Member for Adelaide Second email:21 December 2011 Dear Minister,(Kate Ellis) I am sitting around the house right now itching and wiling to work,get a job. All I hear from the ALP is "We are into getting people working and into JOBS". Well here's a chance to prove it other wise it is "All talk and NO ACTION"! As far as I am concerned it is your job to help make this possible. You have the history below which is easy to read and follow. I have been dealing with the Centrelink Office in Chatswood,NSW The managers name is Danial Earl. The latest information is as follows: I have been round the houses 3 or 4 times with Centrelink at Chatswood,DEEWR in Dee Why and Centrelink's national call line spending hours sitting waiting for responses.locally.Turning up for appointments and the manager was out giving no warning or communication to myself before I presented on time with all my required documentation. The branch manager (Danial Earl) said he could help me and that despite these negative reports about an age restriction of 65, I would be entitled to support and he would help me. He actually arranged for me to be registered with a local DEEWR Vocational Rehabilitation Provider "Xcelerate Employment" in Brookvale,NSW. They called me and made an appointment for a Job Capacity Assessment on the 28th of Dec for which I prepared by getting my doctor to complete a "Medical Report for Assessor". Xcelerate Employment called me yesterday to say that a woman at the same centrelink office had told the manager (Danial Earl) that he was wrong in his assessment of the legislation and in fact that I was not eligible for a JCA or for vocational employment support.Centrelink yesterday advised me that the Manager had "agreed" with this finding (that he had made a mistake) and he would call me before end of business yesterday.This did not happen. I have put in another request to centrelink for this manager to call me today (yesterday).. I am astounded that if a pensioner wants to get back in the work force to either earn more income and or eventually get full time employment to get off the pension that because that person is not between the ages of 14 and 65 there is no support with or without a disability ???? I have a 16 year old son in year 12 excelling in his studies wanting to get into Sydney Uni to study Chemistry and Physics.I need to make extra money to support him.That means a job. I find this current ALP driven centrelink policy "HIGHLY DISCRIMINATORY BASED ON AGE" and highly inconsistent with both ALP and Coalition policy to get older Australians back at work. CAN YOU PLEASE HELP.....THIS IS CRITICAL FOR ME AND MY FAMILY,ESPECIALLY MY SON. In conclusion I ask that you please contact Mr Danial Earl at Centrelink in Chatswood to get me a result. I don't care if you have to arrange a "work around" or even change the age limit.I want to work and the current ALP policies at Centrelink are preventing me from doing so. I have already expressed how I feel about this above but if you can't help me then my next stop will be THE PRESS and TV Networks. I have already copied opposition members on this issue which needs immediate resolution or reform. Sincerely Ian Somerville PROBLEM:
Government is increasing the pension age and states they want to get older Australians back in the workforce.As a retiree of 68 years of age with a slight disability there is currently NO support facility to help me get work unless I am between the ages of 14 and 65.
I feel this needs urgent attention by the Minister,DEEWR and Centrelink.
I have been refused any assistance to get work from Vocational Rehabilitation Providers (which were given to me by the manager at centrelink Chatswood).I have also been refused by centrelink to transfer me to the “Standard Job Network” who can provide Vocational Rehabilitation Assistance if Centrelink transfer me to one of these providers.
A little complicated but essentially there is NO HELP IF YOU ARE OVER 65 !!!
My wife has recently recovered from a stroke and is on debilitating and draining medication to reduce her platelet levels and she has extremely low white blood cell count.Centrelink have stopped providing her with Newstart Allowance despite doctors advice she is unfit to work and offered her nothing.I am supporting my son who is in year 12 at High School and wants to go to university.I want to work to get off the pension and support the needs of my family but there is NO HELP AT ALL.
————————————————————————————————————————–
History of mail to Minister Kate Ellis.
Tuesday, 6 December 2011 10:38 AM “Dear Minister I am a retiree on the aged pension at 68 years of age.I have a slight disability that restricts my walking and standing capacity due to an injury I sustained to my legs in 1989.I was forced to retire in 2009 as I developed very limited capacity to stand and walk.I have attended the Pain Clinic at the RNS Hospital in St Leonard’s and underwent a spinal transplant.This failed to produce any improvement.
Through Centerlink aged pension division,I was referred to one of their “disability providers”.I attended a registration interview for 2 hours,provided my resume,had a great discussion and completed a work plan on their database.Great support it seemed. After I had returned home I had a phone call advising that I had wasted my time as the system had rejected my at the final stage.It seems that this service is only for those in my circumstances who are 14-65 years of age and no older.Given that your policy is to lift the age pension retirement age to 67 or 68 and the ALP are all about creating jobs and getting older people back in the work force why does your policy cut off support at age 65 ? This would hardly seem consistent with your current policy or any future policy to raise the retirement age with an ageing population.Can you please help me overcome this frustrating barrier” ?

Response:
On 13/12/2011, at 5:22 PM, Minister Ellis wrote:
Thank you for your correspondence to the Minister for Employment Participation and Childcare, Minister for the Status of Women, the Hon Kate Ellis MP. The Minister values your correspondence and we will respond to your enquiry in due course.
Thank you for writing to the Minister about this issue.
Regards
Office of the Hon Kate Ellis MP
Minister for Employment Participation and Child Care, Minister for the Status of Women
Federal Member for Adelaide

Second email:21 December 2011
Dear Minister,(Kate Ellis)

I am sitting around the house right now itching and wiling to work,get a job.
All I hear from the ALP is “We are into getting people working and into JOBS”.
Well here’s a chance to prove it other wise it is “All talk and NO ACTION”!
As far as I am concerned it is your job to help make this possible.
You have the history below which is easy to read and follow.
I have been dealing with the Centrelink Office in Chatswood,NSW
The managers name is Danial Earl.
The latest information is as follows:

I have been round the houses 3 or 4 times with Centrelink at Chatswood,DEEWR in Dee Why and Centrelink’s national call line spending hours sitting waiting for responses.locally.Turning up for appointments and the manager was out giving no warning or communication to myself before I presented on time with all my required documentation.
The branch manager (Danial Earl) said he could help me and that despite these negative reports about an age restriction of 65, I would be entitled to support and he would help me.
He actually arranged for me to be registered with a local DEEWR Vocational Rehabilitation Provider “Xcelerate Employment” in Brookvale,NSW.
They called me and made an appointment for a Job Capacity Assessment on the 28th of Dec for which I prepared by getting my doctor to complete a “Medical Report for Assessor”.
Xcelerate Employment called me yesterday to say that a woman at the same centrelink office had told the manager (Danial Earl) that he was wrong in his assessment of the legislation
and in fact that I was not eligible for a JCA or for vocational employment support.Centrelink yesterday advised me that the Manager had “agreed” with this finding (that he had made a mistake)
and he would call me before end of business yesterday.This did not happen.
I have put in another request to centrelink for this manager to call me today (yesterday)..
I am astounded that if a pensioner wants to get back in the work force to either earn more income and or eventually get full time employment to get off the pension that because that person
is not between the ages of 14 and 65 there is no support with or without a disability ????
I have a 16 year old son in year 12 excelling in his studies wanting to get into Sydney Uni to study Chemistry and Physics.I need to make extra money to support him.That means a job.
I find this current ALP driven centrelink policy “HIGHLY DISCRIMINATORY BASED ON AGE” and highly inconsistent with both ALP and Coalition policy to get older Australians back at work.
CAN YOU PLEASE HELP…..THIS IS CRITICAL FOR ME AND MY FAMILY,ESPECIALLY MY SON.

In conclusion I ask that you please contact Mr Danial Earl at Centrelink in Chatswood to get me a result.
I don’t care if you have to arrange a “work around” or even change the age limit.I want to work and the current ALP policies at Centrelink are preventing me from doing so.
I have already expressed how I feel about this above but if you can’t help me then my next stop will be THE PRESS and TV Networks.
I have already copied opposition members on this issue which needs immediate resolution or reform.
Sincerely
Ian Somerville

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