Job Seeker Snapshot 001-02050000

Job Search Interest

The Job Seeker Snapshot allows participants to identify the type of work they are interested in. This is to help develop job matching and training recommendations within the Department of Workplace Relations (DEWR) system.

Work Experience

The issue of inadequate recent work experience is generally seen as representing a disadvantage in seeking employment.

This is a particular issue/barrier for:

• carers/those with parental responsibilities because they are more likely to have left the work force for some time to accommodate family responsibilities (or for other reasons)
• ex-prisoners and school leavers, who have not had an opportunity to form work habits

This question asks the job seeker to identify their  main  activity  over the last 2 years.

Note:  job seekers are asked to identify their main activity in the 2 years preceding their current Job Seeker Snapshot interview. The main activity:

• must be recorded irrespective of whether it occurred in Australia or overseas
• should be the activity that has occupied the greatest amount of time, not necessarily the most recent activity

Based on the responses to the relevant questions, the participant will be categorised into one of the following groups:

• Paid full-time work (35 hours+ per week)
• Paid regular part-time work 8 to 30 hours per week
• Paid regular part-time work less than 8 hours
• Paid seasonal or irregular work
• Unpaid work (including voluntary work)
• Not in the labour force (e.g., caring or studying)
• Not working but looking for work

This factor recognises the following:

• The impact on work performance of long periods of absence from the workforce
• The lack of employer networks/contacts and loss of labour market attachment
• The reluctance of prospective employers to employ job seekers who may be under-skilled or without appropriate experience

This factor recognises the job seeker's highest level of educational attainment. Job seekers with greater levels of educational attainment generally have a greater advantage in the labour market.

Weightings allocated for Education Attainment are based on the responses to the questions asked on the  Education  page in the Job Seeker Snapshot.

The level of educational attainment is established through questions relating to:

• level of primary or  secondary school  education reached, and
• further education such as accredited certificates, diplomas, degrees and post graduate study and whether these qualifications can be still utilised

Responses should include education completed in Australia or the Australian equivalent of educational qualifications gained overseas.

This factor also acknowledges the circumstances of participants who may have a vocational qualification that they cannot use (for example, their qualification is not recognised or outdated or has been suspended/terminated).

The categories under this factor are:

• Education
• Degree or post-graduate qualification
• Trade qualification or a diploma
• Year 12/13
• Year 10 or 11
• Year 9 or below
• Non-trade vocational education
• Special school/ support unit in school
• Did not go to school
• Qualification
• Useful vocational qualifications
• Not useful vocational qualifications
• No further qualifications

The Internet Skills domain includes questions that help determine a participant’s ability to:

• access the internet
• use digital devices to look for work, and
• explore whether they are comfortable using online services

Research undertaken by DEWR has revealed a close relationship between:

• low digital capability/access, and
• other factors associated with lower employability

Participants who disclose low internet skill levels or difficulties with accessing the internet, may not be able to use Workforce Australia Online effectively.

Questions in this domain include:

• access and ability to use the internet to look for work and general usage such as paying bills etc.
• ability to use job search websites and submit job applications and resumes online or via e-mail
• general usage of e-mails

The questions relating to this factor are on the  Ability to work  page in the Job Seeker Snapshot. This includes questions that are voluntary to answer.

Questions are included even though this information may have been collected from job seekers as part of their:

• claim for income support or
• earlier registration as a job seeker

This factor takes account of any disability or medical condition or workplace support needs that a job seeker has. It acknowledges that these do have an impact on a job seeker's ability to obtain and maintain employment.

The points allocated for this factor are from the job seeker's responses to the Job Seeker Snapshot questionnaire. They are supplemented by information contained in the Employment Services Assessment (ESAt) or Job Capacity Assessment (JCA) report, where either takes place.

The categories under this factor are:

• Disability/Medical Condition component
• No disability / medical condition
• Has one disability / medical condition
• Multiple disabilities / medical conditions
• Declined to answer
• Work Capacity component (ESAt or JCA derived)
• 23-29 hours per week work capacity
• 15-22 hours per week work capacity
• <15 hours per week work capacity

Ability to work or look for work

Service Officers must take care that they only record information about these conditions if they affect the job seeker's ability to work or look for work.

Some job seekers may disclose a disability that has no impact on their ability to work or to find work. An example would be where a job seeker who wears glasses records this as a disability, but during the interview it becomes clear that their eyesight has never represented a barrier to employment.

In these cases, Services Australia staff should record the response as 'No' to having any disabilities, medical conditions or addictions that affect their ability to work. If the responses:

• have already been recorded, the response must be corrected, and
• are in hard copy, they must be initialled by the job seeker

No points will be awarded for conditions that do not impact on the job seeker's ability to work or to find work. Care also needs to be taken if a job seeker has  a short term illness/capacity.

Privacy issues

The provisions of the Privacy Act 1998 allow job seekers to have a choice as to whether they provide personal information such as details of medical conditions. Consequently, the option 'Do not wish to answer' is included to provide job seekers with a choice of whether or not to provide this information.

There is no compulsion to provide details of any disclosed conditions. However, staff need to advise the job seeker that the more information they provide about any possible barriers to employment, the better Services Australia is able to determine the most appropriate assistance for them.

Note:  Services Australia must always maintain the privacy of job seekers with communicable diseases. This information may only be disclosed to DEWR with the job seeker's consent or in accordance with law.

The Job Seeker Snapshot may indicate that a job seeker who has a disability or medical condition, be referred for an Employment Services Assessment (ESAt) referral). If referral for an ESAt is flagged, discuss the requirement for medical evidence to be provided within 14 days (for example, Verification of Medical Conditions form (SU684). See Employment Services Assessment (ESAt) overview.

If there has been a verbal request for medical evidence, record the conversation in a DOC.

DEWR and the Department of Social Services have developed a common assessment streaming process. This ensures that job seekers with a disability are referred to the assistance which best meets their needs. Identified job seekers may be referred to:

• DEWR funded employment assistance, or
• Department of Social Services disability employment services

The questions relating to this factor are on the  Your Background  page in the Job Seeker Snapshot. This includes questions that are voluntary to answer.

The Language factor recognises the problems that may be faced by job seekers who have difficulty with spoken and/or written English.

The English Language Proficiency factor reflects the participant’s relative labour market advantage based on their English proficiency. Participants with good English proficiency are considered to have an advantage in the labour market compared to those who have mixed or poor English proficiency. Participants who disclose low levels of English proficiency may be referred to the:

• Skills for Education and Employment (SEE) Program, or
• Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP)

The Job Seeker Snapshot uses a combination of the information recorded to allocate points for English proficiency levels.

The categories under this factor are:

• Good English proficiency level
• Mixed English proficiency level
• Poor English proficiency level

Language and literacy difficulties for sight impaired job seekers

Some sign language users and sight-impaired job seekers may have language and literacy difficulties, especially in the work place. Where these job seekers self-identify as having language and literacy difficulties, points are allocated for their response to this question.

The Job Seeker Snapshot is also populated with information on whether the job seeker has attended any English language courses within the last 6 months.

Descent

Indigenous Status, Country of Birth and Recent Refugee are the three key components of this factor. They help understand a participant’s relative level of labour market advantage, compared with other participants based on their descent or origin.

Indigenous Status

Weightings allocated to Indigenous status recognise the employment disadvantage faced by Indigenous Australians.

Australian born job seekers only are asked whether they identify as an Aboriginal Australian, Torres Strait Islander or both. They also have the option of preferring not to say.

The Privacy Protocol regarding the collection of personal information of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people issued by the Information Commissioner, clarifies the rules relating to the collection of personal information, set out in the Privacy ACT 1988, regarding Indigenous status.

Only ask for culturally sensitive information on a voluntary basis, unless it is absolutely essential for the agencies statutory functions. Only ask questions about a person's Indigenous status where the job seeker has the option of not responding. The option, 'Prefer not to say’ is included to ensure a job seeker does not provide information which they are not required to or do not wish to provide.

Country of Birth

Information for this factor may be pre-populated from information held in the Centrelink system or as part of the Online claim.

When discussing the job seeker's option to provide this information, explain that the more information the job seeker provides, the better it is to determine their employment needs.

People coming to Australia may face any number of difficulties entering the job market, including:

• lack of knowledge about, and attachment to, the Australian labour market
• lack of networks and/or contacts within the Australian labour market
• cultural differences between their country of origin and Australia

The unemployment rates in Australia of job seekers from various countries, have been examined to see which countries of origin result in the greatest disadvantage in the labour market. The points allocated reflect the employment experience of migrants from different countries in the Australian labour market.

Recent Refugee

The ‘Recent Refugee’ component considers refugees and their limited access to the labour market.

The categorisation of a participant under the Country of Birth and Recent Refugee components is determined by:

• administrative data provided by the participant to Services Australia, or
• the Job Seeker Snapshot responses

The categories under this factor are:

• Country of Birth (CoB) – Country component
• Lowest CoB disadvantage
• Low-moderate CoB disadvantage
• Moderate CoB disadvantage
• High-moderate CoB disadvantage
• High CoB disadvantage
• Highest CoB disadvantage
• CoB - Language first spoken component
• Lowest language disadvantage
• Low language disadvantage
• Moderate language disadvantage
• High language disadvantage
• Recent Refugee component
• Recent refugee
• Not a recent refugee

This factor takes account of the labour market disadvantages faced by job seekers with particular living arrangements. This includes:

• people who live alone
• lone parents caring for children, and
• partnered parents with children aged younger than 6 years

The Australian Bureau of Statistics conducted a study that examined the impact of family status on a person's likelihood of long-term unemployment. The study found a significant relationship between family status and long-term unemployment. The study suggested that people with responsibility for others (financial or otherwise), who gain personal support from others, are more likely to maintain job search efforts than those without this commitment and support.

Stability of Residence  

This question seeks to identify job seekers who are homeless or living in unstable or insecure accommodation. Weightings allocated for Stability of Residence recognise that job seekers living in unstable accommodation may experience a range of disadvantages.

Short Stays in Caravan parks/Temporarily staying with friends

The job seeker should decide whether the stay is to be a temporary or more permanent arrangement. If the job seeker considers their stay as temporary, they should answer 'yes' to the question ‘Are you currently staying in emergency or temporary accommodation?’

Young job seekers and insecure accommodation

Young homeless job seekers often lead 'transient' lifestyles. However, research shows that most do not remain homeless for extended periods of time.

The young people in this group include those who are leaving the state care and protection system. They may spend time living on the street before establishing a more stable home life. As well as the impact of their accommodation on their employability, there are a number of other  related issues recognised by other Job Seeker Snapshot factors.

Older Homeless Job Seekers

The circumstances that place these job seekers in insecure accommodation are often quite different to those faced by younger job seekers. Many older job seekers are likely to live in unstable accommodation for much longer periods of time.

Some members of this group may have lost touch with the mainstream community. They may not have the ability or desire to return to living within the mainstream community. These job seekers may be characterised by  particular circumstances and employment barriers.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Job seekers

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in traditional, semi traditional or camp lifestyles could be said to be living in insecure accommodation. The assessment for this factor should include advice from specialist Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff.

Children outside these categories (such as adult children) are considered 'other family members'. Grandparents are also considered 'other family members'.

Living with Others or Living Alone

Job seekers may seek guidance about what categories they fall into, particularly the 'Living with others, not family', and 'Lives alone'. They should consider the level of support they receive from the household where they live. A job seeker living in a share house with a group of close friends who provide considerable support and encouragement, should be considered to be 'living with others'. However, a job seeker living in share accommodation with people not well known to him or her, and who do not provide any emotional support, may be isolated and should be considered to live alone. Similarly, a job seeker living in a boarding house or hostel without a support network should be considered to be living alone.

Family Members

Adopted or foster children are considered sons or daughters for Job Seeker Snapshot purposes. Children are considered dependants if they are:

• under 15 years
• 15 - 19 years at  secondary school
• 15 - 24 years attending tertiary education institution

The categories under this factor are:

• Stability of Residence
• Stable residence
• Secondary unstable residence
• Primary unstable residence
• Living Circumstance
• Lives with spouse or partner
• Lives with non-family members
• Lives alone
• Partnered parent with youngest child 6-15 years old
• Partnered parent with youngest child <6 years old
• Lone parent with youngest child 6-15 years old
• Lone parent with youngest child <6 years old
• Other living conditions
• Carer for adults
• Carer for an adult person >15 years old
• Not a carer for adult person

The questions of the Transport factor are to identify job seekers who may have difficulty attending interviews and/or travelling to and from work on a regular basis. These questions are displayed on the  Transport  page in the Job Seeker Snapshot.

Do you have a valid driver's licence?

This question is to find out whether the job seeker  has a valid driver's licence. Valid means that the driver's licence is paid for and not cancelled or suspended.

Those with a valid learners drivers licence (or its equivalent) for a:

• car - should answer No
• motorcycle – should answer Yes

Do you have your own car or motorcycle?

This question applies to job seekers who answered 'Yes' to having a valid driver's licence. The purpose of this question is to find out whether or not the job seeker  owns a car or motorcycle that he/she can use to travel to and from work.

The job seeker may not necessarily  own  the car or motorcycle. A job seeker may have unrestricted access to a car or motorcycle that he/she can use to travel to and from work but does not own the car or motorcycle. For example, a parent or relative may have loaned a car to the job seeker for him/her to use for an extended period of time. If this is the case, the job seeker should answer 'Yes' to this question.

If the job seeker answers 'No', the question  'Thinking about getting to and from work, what modes of transport can you access?'  will be displayed. Transport includes public transport including train, ferry or tram. The purpose of this question is to find out  what sort of transport  job seekers are able to use  to travel to and from work  when they do not own a car or motorcycle that they can use. This question applies to all job seekers who:

• do not have a valid driver's licence, or
• do not have their own car or motorcycle that they can use to travel to and from work

The job seeker should have sufficient or adequate access to these forms of transport. For example, if they can only access 'Other private transport' on weekends, the job seeker should select another response. Similarly, if they can only access public transport to reach limited locations, the job seeker should select a more suitable response.

The categories under this factor are:

• Own transport
• Other private transport
• Public transport
• No transport

Criminal Convictions

The questions relating to this factor are on the  Personal Circumstances  page in the Job Seeker Snapshot. This includes questions that are voluntary to answer.

Points allocated for this factor recognise the barriers faced by ex-offenders.

The Privacy Act 1988 does not directly govern the collection of information about past convictions. However, the Information Commissioner has issued guidelines based on the conviction provisions of the Crimes Act 1914, as to when and how this information should be collected. Only ask questions of this nature where the job seeker has the option of not responding.

The option 'Do not wish to answer' is included to ensure a job seeker does not provide information which they are not required or do not want to provide.

Inform the job seeker that Services Australia is not seeking information about the nature of their offence, only if they have a criminal conviction, and whether a custodial sentence was imposed.

Advise the job seeker that the more information they provide about any possible barrier to employment, the better Services Australia is able to determine the most appropriate assistance for them. Assure the job seeker that this information is confidential. It will not be released to employers, or anybody else, without the job seeker's express permission. While job seekers should understand why this question is asked, they should not feel pressured to release this information or to discuss it.

Custodial Sentences

There is a range of sentencing options available to the courts that involve a restriction on the individual's freedom. Job seekers may be unsure if the sentence they have served represents a custodial sentence. View the  guide to identifying custodial sentences.

Non-Custodial Sentences

These convictions should be recorded as a criminal offence with no custodial sentence served.

However, in some circumstances, Judges and magistrates can convict and fine an individual, and order that the conviction not be recorded against them. If the job seeker reports that this is the case, do not record a conviction for the job seeker for this question.

If a person was placed on a good behaviour bond, only record as a response if a conviction was recorded.

The categories under this factor are:

• Not an ex-offender
• Ex-offender - Non-custodial sentence
• Ex-offender - Sentenced one fortnight or less
• Ex-offender - Sentenced more than one fortnight.
• Declined to answer

Intergenerational

The Intergenerational factor seeks to identify people who have been:

• a member of a jobless family, or
• affected by intergenerational unemployment characteristics in their early teens (13 to 16 years old)

The Parliamentary report on Intergenerational welfare dependence noted a correlation between parents receiving welfare payments for significant periods of time, and their children also receiving payments.

The under 45 age group is relevant to this factor.

Personal Factors

This factor identifies any other factors or personal characteristics that have not been accounted for by other Job Seeker Snapshot purposes factors. These are factors that may require further assessment to determine their impact on a job seeker's ability to work, obtain work or look for work. This further assessment may include referral for an ESAt or referral to a Services Australia social worker.

This factor recognises that certain personal characteristics, either individually or collectively, may impose further disadvantage on job seekers when seeking employment.

Where an ESAt or JCA report already exists, the categorisation of a participant under this factor is determined from information contained in the ESAt or JCA report.

The categories under this factor are:

• Job Seeker Snapshot derived component
• Anger issues/temper/violence
• Caring responsibilities
• Domestic and family violence
• Drug treatment programme
• Criminal court action pending/on bail/ on remand
• Dental issues
• Don’t have anywhere stable to live / living in emergency or temporary accommodation
• Gambling addiction
• Grief/trauma/personal crisis
• Numeracy issues (e.g., adding numbers)
• Pregnancy
• Relationship breakdown
• Self-esteem/motivation/presentation issues
• Severe stress
• Sleep problems/insomnia
• Any other
• ESAt/JCA derived component
• No impact
• Low impact
• Medium impact
• High impact

Job Search Confidence

The purpose of this factor is to help participants self-assess their confidence in looking for work. Providers and DEWR may use this information to assist to determine the right supports for the participant.

A job seeker's date of birth (Age) and gender factor recognises that age and gender can be an employment barrier. They are recorded as part of the initial contact with Services Australia.

Labour market's perception of age

This factor recognises the labour market's perception of age as an employment barrier. For example, a job seeker aged 50 years or more might expect to encounter reluctance or bias from some prospective employers concerning health issues.

Young job seekers

Data modelling undertaken by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR), showed that female teenagers faced a higher relative labour market disadvantage than male teenagers.

The Age and Gender factor recognises that age and gender can be an employment barrier. It generally confirms that:

• younger participants experience higher relative labour market disadvantage than prime-age participants, and
• male participants experience higher relative labour market advantage than female participants

It also recognises that younger participants (15-19) with any of the following additional characteristics may be less advantaged in the labour market:

• Any ex-offender status other than ‘no criminal conviction’
• Unstable residence
• Less than year 10 education
• Not working but looking for work in the past two years
• Indigenous
• Lone parent

Phone Contactability

Points allocated for contactability are based on a job seeker's access to a telephone.

A job seeker's chances of finding employment are directly related to their ability to make contact with, and be contacted by, both potential employers and Employment Services Providers.

Job seekers are considered 'contactable by phone' where they have at least 1 of the following:

• a home telephone in their own or someone else's name at their place of residence (including a telephone with a silent or unlisted number)
• a mobile telephone

There are no questions in the Job Seeker Snapshot under this factor. The source of the information is from data already recorded on the Telephone Detail (TD) screen in the system. Service Officers must ensure the information is up to date during contact with the customer.

Access to Telephone Messages

Access to telephone messages from a neighbour's, friends or family member's phone, is considered a barrier to employment. A job seeker is not considered contactable by phone, if this is the extent of the contact available.

Similarly, if the job seeker's only telephone access is a work telephone, this is not considered a reliable contact. Do not record the job seeker as being contactable by phone.

Geographic Location

The Geographic Location factor reflects the relative labour market advantage associated with living in a particular location (for example, Employment Region). The condition of the local economy has a key influence on the probability of a participant finding employment.

Participants are categorised based on their home address details provided.

The categories under this factor are:

• Lowest region disadvantage
• Low region disadvantage
• Moderate region disadvantage
• High region disadvantage
• Highest region disadvantage

Participant History

Participant History is included in the Job Seeker Snapshot to recognise that participants who experience reduced time and/or shorter overall periods on income support are more advantageous in terms of finding employment.

Categorisation under this factor is based on information sourced from the participant's registration and benefit payment records. The information considered is:

• income support payments made to the participant for the previous 10 years, and
• whether they have received a Crisis Payment from Services Australia in the previous six months

The categories under this factor are:

• Duration on Income Support
• <12 months
• 12 to 23 months
• 24 to 35 months
• 36 to 47 months
• 48 to 59 months
• 60 months or more
• No income support
• Income Support and Crisis Payment component
• More than once on income support
• Received Crisis Payment
• Received Crisis Payment + Multiple Spells on Allowance
• All others

Proximity to a Labour Market

The Proximity to a Labour Market factor recognises the difficulties faced by geographically isolated participants. The categories under this factor are based on the postcode from the home address details provided to Services Australia. They are:

• Metropolitan or inner regional
• Outer regional, remote, very remote area or with migratory living arrangements