Centrelink and debt collectors working on behalf of the Australian government have been chasing people to pay back millions in welfare money allegedly overpaid to them during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Key points:
- Centrelink is pursuing 11,000people to repay $32m in debts they accrued due to getting both JobSeeker and JobKeeper
- There are allegations of double standards over the government’s treatment of companies and individuals
- The federal government says it isnot pursuing people who are currentlyin lockdown
It comes as companies hold on to $4.6 billion in JobKeeper payments despite recording profits, raising allegations of “double standards”.
Yet experts say Centrelink’s role in chasingalleged overpaymentsis a longstanding bureaucratic issue t…
Read the full article at: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-08-16/welfare-pandemic-covid-centrelink-debts-jobkeeper/100379072