Job seekers with a partial capacity to work or a temporary reduced work capacity 001-09070180

The customer is assessed as having a PCW if both their 'baseline' work capacity and 'with intervention' (previously known as 'future') work capacity are less than 30 hours per week in the Employment Services Assessment (ESAt) or Job Capacity Assessment (JCA) report.

A customer is assessed as having a TRWC if an Assessor has assessed them as being temporarily unable to work for at least 30 hours per week because of a medical condition.

A PCW or TRWC status is coded on the customer's record when the ESAt or JCA report is accepted by Services Australia. An ESAt or JCA is the only valid assessment that can be used to determine a PCW or TRWC status.

A customer who lodges a medical certificate (seeking exemption from mutual obligation requirements) may be referred for an Employment Services Assessment (ESAt) to assess their PCW or TRWC where there is not already a current and valid assessment of the customer's work capacity. The referral for an ESAt should not delay the decision about the temporary incapacity exemption. In all cases, the Service Officer should make the decision about whether to grant an exemption based on available evidence, including the medical certificate completed by the customer's treating doctor.

The ESAt or JCA assesses work capacity according to one of the following bandwidths, which determine the customer's mutual obligation requirements:

• 0-7 hours per week
• 8-14 hours per week
• 15-22 hours per week
• 23-29 hours per week

See the Process page for details of mutual obligation requirements for each bandwidth.

Job seekers who are assessed as having a PCW or TRWC of between 15 and 29 hours per week must satisfy their mutual obligation requirements by undertaking compulsory activities such as looking for work or undertaking paid work.

Job seekers with a PCW or TRWC of either 15-22 or 23-29 hours per week are not treated differently in terms of employment services or the level of paid work required to fully meet their mutual obligation requirements. Both groups can fully meet their mutual obligation requirements through undertaking paid work of at least 15 hours per week. A job seeker with a PCW of 23-29 hours per week does not have to be working for at least 23 hours per week to fully meet their requirements.

A job seeker with a PCW or TRWC may be granted an exemption from mutual obligation requirements. For example, if they have lodged a medical certificate that shows they are temporarily incapacitated for all work. This includes job seekers who meet the criteria for a Temporary Incapacity exemption - serious illness.

However, for job seekers who are not participating in a Community Development Program (CDP), an exemption cannot be granted if the illness or injury was wholly or mainly caused by the person's drug or alcohol misuse (including dependency). See Mutual obligations requirement exemptions for more details.

Job seekers can volunteer to undertake drug dependency treatments or interventions, which may count towards meeting their mutual obligation requirements and annual activity requirements if they are provider managed.

The HPAU can provide and/or facilitate medical advice and opinion to help determine a customer's Temporary Incapacity exemption where medical evidence has been lodged. Only specific staff can contact the HPAU and only for specific reasons, depending on the Service Officer/Specialist's role.

Customers with a PCW who are required to transfer to JSP, YA, or PP at the Disability Support Pension (DSP) transition review contact and are studying and receiving Pensioner Education Supplement (PES), can continue their studies (full-time or part-time) in the same course and be qualified for JSP/YA and PES. This can include courses longer than 12 months.

See Table 2 on the Process page for details of Employment Services Provider processes for customers with a PCW or TRWC.

The customer's Employment Services Provider has access to the work capacity assessment information in the ESAt report. See Step 4 in Table 2 on the Process page.

Job seeker with mutual obligation requirements may fit into more than one category.

The mutual obligation requirement which is the most beneficial to the job seeker is applied, depending on their circumstances. The Services Australia system automatically places the job seeker into the most appropriate participation category. See Step 6 in Table 1 on the Process page for details.