1. MAJOR STUDENT WELLBEING CUTS AT MACQUARIE Macquarie University management are moving to further cut Student Wellbeing services at Macquarie University (with numerous positions being axed and/or downgraded - roles such as Psychologists, Disability Liaison Officers, Accessibility Officers, Student Wellbeing Advisors, Student Advocates, Inappropriate / Unwanted Behaviour Officer, and administrative staff). These latest cuts are on top of extensive job losses to Student Wellbeing services which management implemented in late 2020, with nine positions cut, and numerous essential vacant positions unfilled by the University. 2. THREAT TO COMPLIANCE Student Wellbeing services at Macquarie University are woefully understaffed, and the lack of resources threatens compliance with the Disability Standards for Education and Higher Education Threshold Standards. Proposed resourcing is well below established standards according to the Counselling Standards published by ANZSSA. 3. TWO PERMANENT PSYCHOLOGISTS FOR 45,000 STUDENTS Management is seeking to resource only two (2) permanent Psychologists for a University that has approximately 45,000 domestic and international students, this is severely inadequate. 4. CUTS TO SEXUAL ASSAULT SUPPORT Resources are being cut for the vital ‘Respect. Now. Always.’ service which is designed to prevent and respond to sexual assault matters, discrimination, harassment and bullying. 5. STUDENT NEEDS ARE INCREASING The number of students self-reporting a health condition has increased year on year since 2019, and staff are already struggling to keep up with student demand for wellbeing supports. 6. LOWEST IN SECTOR While other Universities are investing in student wellbeing, Macquarie University’s cuts will see students receiving some of the lowest levels of support in the sector. 7. STAFF AND STUDENTS OPPOSE THESE CHANGES These cuts highlight a critical need to strengthen the Enterprise Agreement provisions for professional staff at Macquarie University. The University is proceeding with harmful restructuring despite widespread and extensive feedback from staff and students opposing the attack on Student Wellbeing. For More Information: * Dec 2021 - Staffing cuts are out of touch with the “Australian Disability Strategy 2021-2031” committed to by the Prime-Minister and Premier of NSW on 3 December 2021, including Policy Priority 3 “Improve pathways and accessibility to further education and training for people with disability” - https://www.disabilitygateway.gov.au/document/3106 * 15 Nov 2021 - "NTEU Response to PST Change Proposals: Student Services and Faculty Professional Services" provides a detailed overview of the proposed cuts to staffing at Macquarie University (including for Student Wellbeing). https://www.nteu.org.au/library/download/id/11356 * Nov 2021 – University of Melbourne paper: "Alleviating the human cost of COVID-19 in Australian universities" highlights the need “to increasingly focus on wellbeing, support, inclusion and trust for both staff and students; this will be a key ingredient to a vibrant and healthy higher education system.” https://melbourne-cshe.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/3962831/human-cost-of-covid-in-aus-unis.pdf

Workers have carried Australia through this pandemic. Many essential workers are still at constant risk of community or workplace exposure to COVID. As we move into the next phase of the pandemic, all workers, including casuals, must have access to Paid Isolation Leave to reduce the risk of COVID spreading, take the steps needed to keep everyone safe and without losing any income. The requirements for workers to test, trace, isolate or quarantine are going to be with us for an extended period, and could increase for people working in frontline jobs if they experience more regular exposure at work. Workers will need Paid Isolation Leave to get us through this next phase of the pandemic rather than rely on depleted or non-existent leave balances. We need Paid Isolation Leave to protect our families and communities, and stop the spread of COVID-19. Paid Isolation Leave is critical to make sure workers or someone they care for can safely test, isolate or quarantine – and keep their families, communities and workmates safe.

My life would be very different if I could hop on a bus or a train or a tram whenever I wanted. Right now going anywhere takes a lot of planning and is not affordable for me, because Public Transport is inaccessible. For over forty years people with disabilities have been campaigning for the same access to transport as everyone else, to have the same access to jobs, work and community, but for many of us lockdown life is normal life. Previous governments have not kept their promises. The Disability Discrimination Act (1992) requires that all infrastructure is fully compliant with the Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002 (DSAPT) by 31 December 2022. That’s 500 days away. And we are woefully behind. Only 15% of Melbourne’s Tram Network is accessible, and buses, trains and taxis across regional Victoria fail daily to meet the needs of residents with disabilities. THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT THE ANDREWS GOVERNMENT CAN DEAL WITH THE SOLUTION ONCE AND FOR ALL We want to see a commitment from the state government to deliver universal access in the next term of government. This would contribute to our economic recovery and deliver a more comfortable, efficient Public Transport system for all Victorians. It would also help Victoria meet its commitment to halve emissions by 2030. And it’s not just the disability community that will benefit from universal access. Parents with prams, older Victorians and people wishing to avoid increasing traffic congestion will all reap the rewards of these upgrades. TAKE ACTION: SEND AN EMAIL TO MINISTER CARROLL HERE Support our community of disability activists by reaching out to the Minister for Public Transport, Ben Carroll, and call on him and the Victorian government to take action for universally accessible Public Transport. Jess and the DRC Campaigns Team

This is extremely important to all Australians as not only could Neale pass away at any moment but also because of the countless hours he puts into raising money, helping with research, hosting, organising and attending events as well as helping others despite raising over $50 million dollars for Motor Neurone Disease (MND) and suffering with it himself which is currently in the last and worse stage of the heart breaking condition not to mention the other stuff he has done outside of his campaigning and the football career he has had, therefore this man deserves no less than to be awarded the Companion of the order of Australia immediately.

Independent assessments are intended to reduce spending on NDIS participants. They are part of government efforts to contain costs in the NDIS. These cuts will only increase the number of disabled people unable to access proper support and funding, and will force many disabled people into precarious positions. The cuts to the NDIS will also drive down pay and conditions for disability and mental health workers. The government says it will not introduce IAs until the second IA trial and further consultations have happened. But whatever they end up proposing, the government's plans are clear: to cut spending and exclude people from the NDIS. But we can stop them. Disabled people, disability and mental health workers, and our supporters can band together to show the widespread opposition to IAs and demand a fairer NDIS for all.

Standard DSP only has a $174 per fortnight allowance for earning beyond the DSP payment. For every dollar after that, the recipient loses 50c in every $1. The effect of this is to reduce the hourly wage in earnings to around $10 per hour. This legislation, which creates a two class disability payment system, is discriminatory. We need to join together and demand that the Government provide all DSP recipients with the same level of benefits. This must be addressed immediately. If you also want a copy and paste letter to forward to your local minister, please feel free to use the following… To minister , I have recently become aware of an unfair and unjust practice of the Australian government paying 2 different disability support payments (DSP). The standard DSP is income and asset tested and restricts recipients to being renumerated for their employment to around $10 gross/hour maximum. The second category is reserved for those classified as ‘legally blind’. As this payment has no income or asset restriction, all money earned from employment is retained. As disabled people face enormous struggles in their day to day life, whether their particular disability is legal blindness, or some other disability type, all should have the same set of access to a fair pay for work undertaken. As a society we have long ago moved toward equity and as such all should be granted the second DSP. This needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency. Sincerely,

During this crisis, there is no more important time to show our support for Australia's most vulnerable citizens. They deserve to be safe and supported, and the workforce they rely on need to be safe and supported as well. These measures need to apply to all people with disability and the workers who support them – not just those funded through the NDIS. If we are going to beat this crisis, we need action now. Demand action. Sign the petition NOW.

As the principal funder of disability services, the Federal Government has the responsibility to ensure services continue in a safe way for both people with a disability and the workers who support them. The Federal Government must take action now to ensure that people with disability are able to safely access services. The disability workforce across Australia are amongst those on the front line of this crisis, continuing to provide support and assistance to people with disability. Disability support workers already feel overworked and understaffed. There are also high levels of insecure, casual work in the disability sector. They must be better supported in doing their job and facing this COVID crisis – to ensure their safety and the safety of the people they support.

The government cannot be allowed to ignore disabled people in the midst of a global pandemic. When the stimulus announcement was made we were shocked to learn we had been excluded. It exposes that the government just doesn’t get it – what it means for people who are disabled, and why the DSP is different to other payments. It costs more to be disabled. We are workers too, and disabled people and carers are losing income as a result of this crisis. Many disabled people are more vulnerable to COVID19 than other Australians. We face higher costs for specialised supports, healthcare, medication, housing and transport. There are many essential costs that the NDIS does not cover and during the pandemic people’s costs are only going up. The cost of support workers and other specialised services is increasing, some by as much as 10 per cent. NDIS invoice processing times are blowing out. This decision to exclude disabled people and carers exposes the government’s failure to understand our lives and needs. We must not let the government divide us into ‘deserving’ and ‘undeserving’ groups. We must demand that our leaders immediately include the most vulnerable people in our community in the $550 per fortnight coronavirus supplement. We must stand together in the fight for disabled people and carers to be treated equally.

The lives of thousands of Australians hinge on our government taking immediate action by guaranteeing paid leave and protective equipment for all home care & disability support workers.

My name is Jane, and my client Kim is one of thousands of NDIS clients who received the letter telling them their services with Australian Unity will be cut. I’ve been working with Kim for fifteen years, and I’ve never seen her this stressed. She chose to challenge Australian Unity’s decision on the basis that the changes would put her health and safety at risk, but now she’s on the verge of having her care discontinued, with no adequate replacement services in place. All Kim wants is to maintain quality care from her care workers she has had long lasting relationships with. She’s tried everything she can think of, and now she’s scared. As a former health professional, she knows her condition would be far worse, if it wasn’t for the well trained care workers she receives her daily care from.

If employers continue to be bound by the current arrangements, they will soon be unable to continue delivering key services. We’ll see large-scale job-losses, loss of expertise, disruption of services to clients and a high potential for reduction in the quality of services. Without this support, Victoria’s disability sector will likely fail to retain the skilled and committed workers required under the NDIS, potentially resulting in widespread market failure across Victoria. We need to see an investment of $46 million over 3 years, to deliver the quality NDIS that people with disabilities so rightly demanded. This represents just 7 cents in every dollar that the Victorian government will contribute to the NDIS in a single year – but the impact will be huge.