Seasonal Work Preclusion Period (SWPP) 106-05020080

Was the customer or their partner employed in seasonal, intermittent or contract work for less than 12 months prior to claiming?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, SWPP does not apply. Procedure ends here

Is the customer claiming a payment such as JobSeeker Payment (JSP), Youth Allowance (YA), Special Benefit (SpB), Farm Household Allowance (FHA), Parenting Payment (PP) partnered or single, Austudy, Carer Payment (CP) or Disability Support Pension (DSP) (except customers who are permanently blind)?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No, go to Step 4

In the last 6 months, has the customer or their partner worked as seasonal, intermittent or contract workers?

• Yes, go to Step 5
• No, go to Step 4

The customer is not subject to an SWPP. Continue processing the claim. Procedure ends here.

The work item ZDMS_SU496 - Seasonal Contract and Intermittent Work Details is created when a customer uploads a Seasonal, Contract and Intermittent work details (SU496) form:

• Check the Activity List (AL) screen to identify the form code on the left hand side of the activity
• Check the Document List (DL) screen to identify if there was a triggering event that created this activity
• Action and update as per scan
• When actioned and completed:
• Select the Transaction ID from the AL screen under the Digital Image Work Items tab
• Select Edit
• Document action in Notes field
• Change Status from Document Added to Completed
• Select Save

Use the SU496 form to work out the number of jobs the customer and/or their partner ceased in the 6 months prior to the date of claim and to get information about the earnings so the SWPP can be calculated. The Resources page contains a link to the form.

If given verbally, the Service Officer must record the customer's answers to the relevant questions in a DOC on their record.

Verification of the information is required. This may be provided by:

• payslips
• invoice books
• group certificates
• profit and loss statements
• wage books
• bank statements
• time sheets
• a letter from the employer, or
• by providing their employment contract

To code the Seasonal Work Period (SWP) screen in:

• Process Direct, go to Step 6
• Customer First, go to Step 7

In Process Direct:

• In the new claim transaction, go to the Seasonal Work Details (SWP/SWPS) screen
• Select Add New Row
• On the Create Seasonal Work Details screen, update the following fields:
• Employer Name, key employer name
• Employer Reference, key employer reference number if known
• Employee Reference, key employee reference number if known
• Type of Work, select the relevant option
• Industry Code, select the relevant option
• Start Date, key the start date of employment
• End Date, key the end date of employment. Note: when coding partners earnings, ensure the 'Seasonal Work Start/End Dates' match those of the seasonal work customer if possible. If not, the system will apportion the partner's earnings in line with the customer's period of seasonal work. The Average Weekly Ordinary Time Earnings (AWOTE) for the current year is stored on the system, and is defaulted in the Relevant AWOTE field for display only. This AWOTE is the amount that will be used in the SWPP calculation
• Gross Amount Earned, key the total gross earnings
• Total Allowable Deductions, key the total allowable deductions
• SWPP Exemption Indicator, select Yes or No if an exemption indicator should be applied
• Select Save
• Complete the Receipt and Channel fields, select Save
• Select Assess and address any errors/warnings
• Finalise the transaction by selecting Assess again, then select Finish. Record details of the update on the Finalise screen
• Select Finalise to complete the transaction

In Customer First:

• Select 'Seasonal Work' from the Newstart Task Selection (NTS), Pension Task Selection (PTS) or Parenting Payment Task Selection (PGTS) screen
• The SWP screen will display

Code the following:

• The name of the employer or company in the Employer Name: field
• The Employer Reference and Employee Reference numbers (if available)
• The appropriate code in the Type of Work: field:
• SEA - seasonal
• INT - intermittent
• CON - contract
• NON - not seasonal, intermittent or contract. Note: 'NON' is only recorded for the non-seasonal, intermittent or contract work income earned by the customer's partner during the customer's period of seasonal, intermittent or contract work. Do not code 'NON' for single customers. The partner's non seasonal work income is recorded on a separate SWP screen on the partner's record (i.e. the non-seasonal worker's record)
• The appropriate code in the Type of Industry: field:
• AGR - Agriculture & related industries
• ART - Artists (includes actors, writers & performers)
• COM - Computers
• CON - Consultants
• FAC - Factory Workers
• FIS - Fishing and related industries
• HEA - Health
• HUN - Hunter/Trapper (includes kangaroo shooters)
• MET - Metal workers
• MIN - Mining
• OIL - Oil Industry
• OTH - Other industries
• SIL - Silo Workers
• SPT - Sports persons
• TAX - Tax (includes accountants)
• TEA - Teaching
• TOU - Tourism
• TRA - Transport (truck driving, shipping)
• The dates work commenced and finished in the Work Start Date: and Work End Date: fields. Note: when coding partners earnings, ensure the 'Seasonal Work Start/End Dates' match those of the seasonal work customer if possible. If not, the system will apportion the partner's earnings in line with the customer's period of seasonal work. The Average Weekly Ordinary Time Earnings (AWOTE) for the current year is stored on the system, and is defaulted in the Relevant AWOTE: field for display only. This AWOTE is the amount that will be used in the SWPP calculation
• The total gross earnings in the Total Earnings: field
• The total amount of allowable deductions (if any) in the Total Allowable Deductions: field
• When all information about the particular job has been recorded, press [Enter]. A blank (new) SWP screen will be displayed. If more jobs are to be coded, repeat the coding for each job
• When all jobs have been recorded, press [Enter] again to continue with the new claim activity

The results of the SWPP calculation can be viewed in:

• Process Direct:
• go to the Date of Commencement (NDC) screen
• for Parenting Payment and Pension payments affected by the SWPP, in the claim, go to the Waiting Period Calculation Results (WPCR) screen
• Customer First:
• on the Newstart DOC Calculator (NDC) screen (SWPP end date)
• the NSS Seasonal Work Period Summary (NSWS) screen (SWPP duration), for all Allowance payments
• the WPCR screen for Parenting Payment and Pension payments affected by the SWPP. The system will automatically apply the results to the customer's record

A manual start date can be coded on the NDC screen for Allowance payments. For manual calculations, see examples on the References page, in particular Policy Guideline 3.1.7.30.

For Allowance payments see the NDC screen (SWPP end date) or the NSWS screen (SWPP duration).

For Parenting Payments and Pensions, see the WPCR screen:

• If the customer does have an SWPP, advise them to test their eligibility for a Low Income Health Care Card (LIC)
• If a customer claims DSP and has to serve an SWPP, advise them they are not qualified for a Pension Concession Card (PCC)
• Record details of SWPP on a DOC

Note: job seekers serving an SWPP are not required to satisfy their mutual obligation requirements during this period. For the duration of an SWPP a customer is exempt from entering into a Job Plan.