Reporting a welfare cheat / fraudster

[Ideo]

This person has no mental deficiencies (that I know of ), other than thinking it's OK to take tax payer money when you can physically work...

The issue for them not working is physical in nature. Problem is this same supposed injury does not stop them physically in sporting activities and physically working for cash. My take is if you can participate in sporting activity and work on the side you should not be on welfare...Even if the injury DID prevent them from being physical they could get a low physical impact job...

I looked at this web page re reporting:

https://www.centrelink.gov.au/wps/portal/clk_common/TORS

Where it details they need a lot of confirming info (name, birth date, address etc..). Seems by comments it is OK just to ring up with maybe not as much info?

Definitely report by a phone call.

Phoning up is much easier and they, in my experience, take it pretty seriously. I think that information is there to stop people making malicious reports.

 

[Trippy]

A guy I went to school with has PTSD from serving in Iraq.

He manages to play footy on a Saturday but is unable to hold down a permanent job due to serious, deep seated issues caused by that.

I would hardly say he is scamming the system. But, hell, I guess because he is able to play football for an hour a week then he must just be a scammer.

Maybe the football actually helped with the PTSD ?

 

[Scott No Mates]

And I think you'll find that cerebral palsy is more of a physical condition than a mental with mental impairments being only in a small percentage of cases.

I am currently working with a PM who has CP. It doesn't stop him from working, driving, skydiving or living an otherwise normal life.

 

[Kinnon Bell]

I am currently working with a PM who has CP. It doesn't stop him from working, driving, skydiving or living an otherwise normal life.

Exactly my point. I have not met one person with cerebral palsy who is not valued, contributing member of society.

 

[Ideo]

Maybe the football actually helped with the PTSD ?

Yep, I think it does - major issue with being in crowds due to suicide bombings etc etc so I think being in a crowd doing something he loves really helps. He wants to work - but getting panic attacks continually when a car backfires or someone drops something aren't conducive to work.

Snide comments from people who's idea of conflict is typing sociopathic messages online are a bit less of an issue.

 

[Corey Batt]

Yep, I think it does - major issue with being in crowds due to suicide bombings etc etc so I think being in a crowd doing something he loves really helps. He wants to work - but getting panic attacks continually when a car backfires or someone drops something aren't conducive to work.

Snide comments from people who's idea of conflict is typing sociopathic messages online are a bit less of an issue.

It's all a process. I know someone with similar experiences who is working through it. He's made a LOT of progress from the time he's come back, now works, is in a much more healthier relationship with his family etc. The first few years were hard however.

I think there are very limited circumstances where a person is unable to work indefinitely.

There are arguments that a continued integration into work helps with PTSD, should it be sensitive to cause and triggers of the disorder.

 

[Ideo]

It's all a process. I know someone with similar experiences who is working through it. He's made a LOT of progress from the time he's come back, now works, is in a much more healthier relationship with his family etc. The first few years were hard however.

I think there are very limited circumstances where a person is unable to work indefinitely.

There are arguments that a continued integration into work helps with PTSD, should it be sensitive to cause and triggers of the disorder.

Yeah, he's getting a lot better. He's doing part time work now, and whilst he'll have issues for a bit, it is getting less and less. Taken a few years, as you say.

People just making assumptions based on their own extremely narrow understanding of, well, life, just get on my wick.

 

[geoffw]

Kind of unrelated but anyway.

What used to make me laugh was when I was in the building game, when it rained the boys would be sent home. Fair enough...

...but then I would be driving in the rain over the weekend and they would be in the park playing football in it...


i know too harsh. bad ok180 bad boy!

I would have thought they were completely separate issues. It's not the people getting wet which is an issue- it's the safety issues of working in a partially constructed building with wet floors etc?

 

[geoffw]

Cool, you had a hard time in Iraq. Here, have a pension for 12 months and then go back to work please.

No one forced him to be in the army after all.

Completely unnecessarily harsh, and shows a complete lack of understanding of PTSD.

BUt then it took many years for society to realise that it could be such a debilitating disorder.

 

[Bats]

No I would make the 'phone call.

If the person in question is able to carry out these activities lawfully, it will come out in the wash.

The government doen't have any money, (they just use and a lot of time waste) our money, and if your actions expose a welfare cheat I am all for it.

 

[Trippy]

I would have thought they were completely separate issues. It's not the people getting wet which is an issue- it's the safety issues of working in a partially constructed building with wet floors etc?

That would be the logical assumption, but no...

Even when if it perfectly safe to be working indoors (cover job with roof) and have covered walkways between buildings the sites are shut down. Workers are sent home at the cost of the employer. Like it's the employers fault it's raining

Note, you are not sent home at the first sign of rain...first you have to sit in the site shed for a minimum of 4 hours to make sure it won't stop...then you go home. Safety plays very little part of this rort...

 

[Scott No Mates]

Yes trippy it's at the builder's cost however it is calculated in the charge out rate and wet weather has a cap on the number of hours that you get paid. so if in drought work it out

 

[MTR]

Tippy
Is this correct, this person has been cheating for 10 years, if this is the case perhaps they have already been reported, and some how they slipped through the radar.

In any case, I know of a similar situation and the person who got reported started knocking on neighbours doors trying to find out who did it. Make sure you there is no come back and its unanimous REPORT.

 

[geoffw]

... and its unanimous REPORT.

It should probably be anonymous as well ;-)

 

[MTR]

It should probably be anonymous as well ;-)

Yes, anonymous, absolutely.

I remember complaining years ago when we lived in a unit, continual parties/noise from neighbours. The police knocked on how door to advice us that they had a chat to the people in question. Thanks, for that one, that helped a lot.

 

[ok180]

I would have thought they were completely separate issues. It's not the people getting wet which is an issue- it's the safety issues of working in a partially constructed building with wet floors etc?

Not really, because you can go back to work as soon as it stops raining. So everything is still wet. The issue is the rain itself. The rain on the football field is perhaps different???

Another one I used to love was people who complained when it was smoggy or if there was a lot of dust on the job. Had to run down there with dust masks to keep them happy, meanwhile they are off to the side having a ciggie.

 

[Beanie Girl]

Workcover history?

This condition, which is supposedly serious enough to prohibit working, does not stop the individual from participating in an impact sport bi-weekly.
Nor does this injury stop them from working "off the books" on a cash basis performing a trade based service.

If this person has a workcover history of injury as long as your arm, it could be no employer is willing to take them on 'official books'. This person might have given up applying for permanent jobs because no employer would touch them with a barge pole should he get re-injured again and raise their workcover premiums.

So this person might have worked out that employers were happy to pay him 'cash-in-hand', just not officially. Also he might have given up applying for permanent work because knockbacks were too many and damaging to self-esteem. Just saying....

When you applied for jobs, it used to be mandatory reporting to report if you had a workcover claim in previous employment and give details, not sure if it is still the practice now. Any workcover claims including for stress, depression, anxiety as well as for physical injury.

 

[cimbom]

I'm going to go against the grain and say that I wouldn't report it. I prefer to stay out of such situations.

 

[gottabespotless]

Yes, anonymous, absolutely.

I remember complaining years ago when we lived in a unit, continual parties/noise from neighbours. The police knocked on how door to advice us that they had a chat to the people in question. Thanks, for that one, that helped a lot.

Why did you give them your address?

 

[geoffw]

Yes, anonymous, absolutely.

I remember complaining years ago when we lived in a unit, continual parties/noise from neighbours. The police knocked on how door to advice us that they had a chat to the people in question. Thanks, for that one, that helped a lot.

Not as bad as the police who were investigating a break in to our unit. They tol the neighbours that our lock had been broken and hadn't yet been fixed.