Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects (MALEP) employment related exclusion period 001-03040040

Job seekers who wish to move (or have already moved) to another area need to be assessed as to whether a Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects (MALEP) 26 week employment related exclusion period applied if they are in receipt of either:

• JobSeeker Payment (JSP)
• Youth Allowance (YA) (job seeker), or
• Special Benefit (SpB) with Nominated Visa Holder (NVH) mutual obligation requirements

Has the job seeker already moved?

• Yes, update the address details. See Job seeker change of address. Go to Step 2
• No, obtain as much information from the job seeker about where they plan to relocate. Go to Step 2

As part of a MALEP Assessment, Service Officers will:

• compare the labour markets of both the job seekers previous and new address
• assess whether the job seeker has an acceptable reason for moving
• consider the job seeker's skills and marketability in the new labour market
• decide whether to apply a 26 week employment related exclusion period, and
• document their decision including reference to evidence sourced to support this outcome

In the following circumstances however, no MALEP Assessment is required (such as, the move is 'automatically approved'):

• the job seeker's previous and new address will be located in the same locality - such as, both addresses have the same postcode and town name
• the job seeker is moving to or between (or within 90 minutes) 1 of the following major metropolitan areas - Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide

Is a MALEP Assessment required?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No:
• Tell the job seeker the move has been approved and is not subject to a MALEP Assessment
• Record details on a DOC
• Manually cancel any Manual Follow-up (MFU) activities that may result due to the customer advising of a new address
• Procedure ends here

There are specific delegations, which apply when deciding whether an employment exclusion period will - or will not - be applied. Delegations are based on the APS level of the employee conducting the MALEP Assessment. Employees at the:

• APS3 level or above are delegated to conduct a MALEP Assessment for job seekers in receipt of JobSeeker Payment or Special Benefit (NVH) mutual obligation requirements
• APS5 level or above only, are delegated to conduct a MALEP Assessment for job seekers in receipt of Youth Allowance (YA)

Are you delegated to conduct the required MALEP Assessment?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, a referral to a suitable delegate is required
• contact Local Peer Support (LPS) to connect the jobseeker with an appropriate delegate. See Tier 0 technical support - self-sufficiency
• connect the job seeker with an appropriate delegate in your office Procedure ends here

The Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects workflow compares labour market conditions in 2 locations. It helps to assess if a job seeker will significantly reduce their chances of getting work by moving to the new area.

If the rate for the new area is more than 2% higher than the rate for the area the job seeker is leaving, further investigation into the reasons for the job seeker's move and their skills will be required.

A printout of the Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects workflow can be provided to the job seeker if requested.

Note: there are currently ongoing technical issues with the Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects (MALEP) tool as a result of mismatched unemployment data between the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations.

This problem is preventing the search of some localities in the Northern Territory, Queensland and South Australia. In these instances,contact the Level 2 Helpdesk for assistance.

Is the job seeker moving to a non-metropolitan area with an unemployment rate more than 2% higher than the previous location?

• Yes, go to Step 5
• No, the move can be approved. See Step 1 in Table 2

The Social Security Act 1991 allows for job seekers to move to an area of reduced employment prospects due to family reasons, including:

• to be with, or near, a family member who has already established residence (must have been living in the new residence for at least 26 weeks) in the new area
• to accompany a parent who changes their residence (YA job seekers receiving the dependant 'at home' rate only)
• to treat or alleviate a physical disease or illness suffered by the job seeker or an immediate family member
• because of an extreme circumstance, such as family and domestic violence, destruction of family home, etc.

If a job seeker claims that they are relocating for this reason, the job seeker must provide evidence to Services Australia to that effect however Service Officers can use testimony from Services Australia specialists (for example, Social Workers) or information on the job seeker's Centrelink record.

If the job seeker needs time to provide additional evidence, issue a Request for Information and record details for the discussion in a DOC.

Has it been verified that the job seeker is moving for an approved family reason?

• Yes, the move can be approved. See Step 1 in Table 2
• No, further investigation into the job seeker's skills, the local labour market and reasons for moving may be required, go to Step 6

Full-time job seekers are required to look for and accept work within 90 minutes travel time from home to work, whereas principle carers and people with a partial capacity to work are required to look for and accept work within 60 minutes travel time. Travel time means direct travel by the person's normal and most cost effective mode of transport.

Note: for the purposes of a MALEP Assessment, principle carers and people with a partial capacity to work may have their move approved (in line with other job seekers) if they move to a location within 90 minutes of a major city.

Whilst a job seeker may intend to relocate to an area with a weaker labour market, their move can be approved if they can still reasonably travel to, and access jobs in a labour market that is comparative to, or stronger than their original location.

Service Officers must:

• assess the commuting capability of the job seeker and whether it will decrease with the move to the new location (for example, public transport readily available at the old location but not at the new location and the job seeker does not have private transport), and
• use the Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects workflow to compare the labour market conditions in the job seeker's original location and the nearby labour market

Service Officers can use online resources - such as Whereis - to source supporting evidence such as verification of commuting time.

Note: job seekers cannot volunteer to travel longer distances in order to have their move approved. For more information, see Suitable/unsuitable work.

Has it been verified that the job seeker will be able to reasonably travel to and access employment opportunities in a nearby labour market?

• Yes, the move can be approved. See Step 1 in Table 2
• No, go to Step 7

In some circumstances, job seekers will be moving to a new location with a weaker labour market, however the job seeker has specific skills pertinent to that area that increase their chances of finding employment.

These situations may include:

• seasonal work opportunities (for example, harvest, ski season, fruit picking)
• a destination location where particular skills are in demand (for example, engineering positions)
• specialised employment opportunities
• local industry needs (hospitality industry in major tourist destinations)
• self-employment opportunities, one-off local developments (for example, resort development, building national transport linkages)

If a job seeker claims that they are relocating for this reason the job seeker must provide evidence to Services Australia to that effect, however Service Officers can also use verbal testimony from a job seeker's current or prior employment services provider.

Has it been verified that the job seeker is moving to an area better matched to their skills?

• Yes, the move can be approved. See Step 1 in Table 2
• No, go to Step 8

Whilst a job seeker may be moving to an area of lower employment prospects, it is acceptable to do so if the relocation is necessary in order to accept an offer of, or commence suitable work.

If a job seeker claims that they are relocating for this reason the job seeker must provide evidence to Services Australia to that effect however, Service Officers can also use information found on the job seeker's Centrelink record. For example, if the job seeker's employment services provider initiated the job referral, the details may be found in the Provider Recorded Information workflow.

Note: if job seeker has ceased employment after moving, their reason for moving may still be considered an acceptable reason for the purposes of the MALEP Assessment. A compliance investigation must be generated where the job seeker is unemployed due to a voluntary act or misconduct as a worker.

Has it been verified that the job seeker is relocating in order to accept, or commence an offer of suitable employment?

• Yes, the move can be approved. See Step 1 in Table 2
• No, go to Step 9

Has it been verified that the job seeker is relocating in order to participate in an approved labour market or rehabilitation (DES or DMS) programme?

• Yes, the move can be approved. See Step 1 in Table 2
• No, go to Step 10

Generally relocating purely in order to obtain cheaper accommodation is not considered to be a sufficient reason for moving to an area of lower employment prospects.

It is however appropriate to approve a relocation where:

• the job seeker is transient or homeless, and has been offered stable long-term accommodation, or
• the job seeker has been offered public housing and there are no other suitable houses on offer within an area of better employment prospects or the job seeker has been on an extended waiting list

If a job seeker claims that they are relocating for this reason the job seeker must provide evidence to Services Australia to that effect, however Service Officers can use testimony from Services Australia specialists (for example, Social Workers) or information on the job seeker's Centrelink record.

Has it been verified that the job seeker is moving to obtain public housing or stable accommodation following a period of homelessness?

• Yes, the move can be approved. See Step 1 in Table 2
• No, the move cannot be approved. See Step 2 in Table 2

Tell the job seeker the move has been approved, and why, however if their plans or circumstances change (for example, they intend to move to a different location) they should contact the agency to have their move reassessed.

Tell the job seeker that a new employment services provider will be automatically allocated to them if required, and they may be required to enter a new Job Plan at their first appointment.

Create a DOC confirming:

• the MALEP test was run, including a transcript of the information from the Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects workflow
• details of why the move was approved, and what evidence has been supplied / sourced to support this decision, and
• any advice given the job seeker about this decision

Ensure that any MALEP-related started activities on the Activity List (AL) screen are finalised.

Procedure ends here.

Advise job seeker that the move has been assessed as significantly lowering their employment prospects and is not approved by Services Australia.

Advise job seeker that a MALEP 26 week employment related exclusion period will apply from the date they move (or moved) to their new place of residence and that they will remain ineligible for 26 weeks from that date. If they have already moved their penalty can be waived if they:

• move back to their original residence, or
• move to a new location that has a labour market equal to, or stronger than the one at their original address

The job seeker will only be paid from the day they move into the new address.

Create a DOC confirming:

• the MALEP test was run, including a transcript of the information from the Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects workflow
• details of why the move was not approved, and what evidence has been supplied / sourced to support this decision, and
• any other advice given to the job seeker about this decision

Ensure that any MALEP-related started activities on the Activity List (AL) screen are finalised.

Has the job seeker already moved to the new address?

• Yes, the MALEP exclusion period will need to be coded on BIDE. Go to Step 3
• No, no further updates are required. Procedure ends here

When it is determined that a MALEP exclusion period must be applied, the penalty period is recorded on the Incident Summary (BIIS) and Incident Details (BIDE) screens.

Use the Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects workflow to:

• update the Investigation Details (BIDE) screen. Code the actual date the MALEP occurred in the Incident Date: field. This is the date the job seeker moved to the new location
• in the Incident Reason: field, code either 'LOW' for job seekers currently in receipt of payment or 'LOC' for job seekers claiming a payment
• code the Payment Type: field
• code the date of determination of the exclusion period in the Status Date: field. (Normally today's date)
• code 'APP' (or 'RAP' if reapplying the penalty after review) in the Investigation Status: field
• complete the Source: and DOR: fields in the screen footer and press [Enter]
• the system defaults the correct values in the Create Date: Incident Type: Penalty Start Date: Penalty End Date: and Rate Reduction %: fields. The details now display in the summary section of the screen
• finalise activity via the Assessment Results (AR) screen. Note: the system will automatically cancel a current payment when a MALEP is recorded (the cancellation code will be LOW or LOC)

Note: if MALEP is to be imposed on a new claim, include it in the new claim activity by selecting the breaches screen via the NSS Task Selection (NTS) screen and complete it as part of the claim process.