In a cost of living and rental crisis, placement poverty is pushing students to the absolute brink.
Pressure from the Greens and students have pushed Labor in the right direction. But a half-baked, means-tested supplement for only a fraction of students shows that they have a real lack of understanding of the severity and extent of placement poverty.
Labor’s recent announcement on student placements is a slap in the face. This solution is lacklustre and really only a drop in the ocean.
Every student should be paid for every hour of work they’re required to do as part of their degree.
Placements should be designed to benefit student learning, not exploit their labour with onerous hours and conditions. But instead of helping struggling students, the government is giving scraps.
Did you know?
Labor’s recent announcement pays students well below minimum wage, at just $8 an hour. Plus: it’s limited to students doing certain degrees.
Students should be paid at least minimum wage for their work on placement, not a lesser supplementary amount. That payment should be universal and not limited by degrees. Labor lacks the ambition for the transformation we need in higher education.
Students are getting a raw deal while Labor hands piles of cash to billionaires, big corporations and the defence industry.
Education is a basic human right, and students should be guaranteed a liveable income.