By Anthony Benbow
PERTH — "Governments talk of the benefits of micro-economic reform, but nobody talks about the effects of unemployment, which cost society far more than what we get in return. In Australia now the top 10% of the population have 50% of the wealth, while the bottom 50% have about 5%, and the gap is growing", Ian Carter of the welfare organisation Anglicare told a June 19 rally organised by the Australian Services Union (ASU) to oppose funding cuts to Skillshare.
Representatives from organisations including the Catherine Macauley Family Centre, YMCA and WA Council of Social Services spoke as did the ASU and Skillshare Midland and Scarborough. More than 300 people braved stormy weather to attend, including many Skillshare workers and clients.
About 150 Skillshare centres throughout Australia provide training courses and assistance for unemployed people trying to re-enter the work force, including practical help in preparing job applications and CVs and retraining in everything from computer skills to basic trades and industrial cleaning. It also runs Job Club and New Work Opportunities programs.
While some of its functions seem a part of the official unemployment figure-fudging, Skillshare does provide many services that help combat the depression and lack of self-esteem unemployment creates. It claims a 65% success rate in helping people back into the work force.
Many former Skillshare clients spoke highly of the support they had received. Others, however, spoke of doing course after course and remaining in the unemployment queue.
Amanda Vanstone's proposed 33% cut would devastate the agency; already Skillshare has had to move out of buildings, cut courses and course intakes and start reducing staff. "I'm here because I want my job back", was the placard carried by a worker from Cannington Skillshare sacked three weeks ago.
Speakers all pointed out that public services and education, already stripped to the bone, are still to being slashed while defence remains untouched.
Increasingly Skillshare has had to seek funding from non-government and welfare agencies. One speaker commented: "The government knows we are deeply committed to these services continuing. Are they planning to wait and see if we stretch ourselves still further to plug their funding hole?"
The rally's loudest cheer was for an unemployed worker who spoke against the two major parties' commitment to big business over working people's needs. His message was clear — the fight to defend our hard-won community services cannot succeed if a real political alternative to Labor and Liberal is not built along the way.