Can you tell me about the Workfare Income Supplement? How much can I get and what is the criteria?
REPLY
You can find the information in this FAQ. It is applicable to an employee who earn less than $1,700 a month and live in a property with an annual value less than $11,000. The amount of the supplement is calculated on a complicated formula and is subject to a maximum of $1,050 for a person age 35 to a maximum of $2,800 for person at age 60. This is the maximum, so that actual amount paid to you may be much lower. Self-employed people at low incomes are also eligible for the supplement.
Tan Kin Lian
3 comments:
This is what the Govt likes to do in helping the citizens. Help is always there provided you are capable of going thru a load of paper work, process and criterias until you gave up and rely on your own or suffer in silence.
Publicly, Govt can say there is avenue to get help but realistically it is not really helping. Minimum wage is a better and more dignified way in helping and setting a minimum standard for people to work for a living. It is time for Govt to seriously look at this.
I agree, even a person is eligible for the WIS, the amount of cash provided is really pathetic. I think many people are not eligible but need financial help in one way or other.
Poverty is relative.
Would a jobless person living in a 2 or 1 room flat be different from a person living in the slums of a 3rd world country? In a make shift hut with cardboard and pieces of plastic sheet, used tires?
Where do we draw a line to determine who will get assisstance, duration and the quantum amount? What are the triggers?
These are difficult questions frought with ethical, social issues.
The USA & UK systems are in near collapse due to their sheer size and committments, and dependance on Government help.
We can learn from them and adapt.
There are people who clearly need help, in one form or another.
To be effective, there should be checks and this inevitably will increase paper work and human beings to admininster them.
The NGO are better in doing this.
They know the ground.
They do not have bureaucracy
They have committed people
They lack funds
They lack volunteers
We, who have the means to share our time and money should avail ourselves to help.
It is the only way.
Governments are not agile enough to deal with it.
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