FAMILY LIFE A FINANCIAL PRESSURE COOKER
May 30, 2007

Working families in Lithgow are struggling under the triple-whammy of long working hours, unpaid overtime and escalating rates of personal insolvency.

Bob Debus, the Labor candidate for Macquarie, said new data confirmed that the economic burden was increasing for working families.

An Australian Bureau of Statistics survey has found that the majority of employees who work overtime do not get paid for the overtime hours. The survey also found that almost one-third of employees work unsocial hours, between 7pm and 7am.

And figures from Senate estimates reveal that the number of personal insolvencies has doubled in the nine months to March. The dramatic jump corresponds with recent data from the Supreme Courts of NSW and Victoria that shows a sharp spike in mortgage default actions.

“Prime Minister Howard tells us that people have never been better off but the facts speak for themselves,” said Mr Debus.

“The Government can spin fanciful stories about keeping the good times rolling but you cannot argue with these grim statistics.

“I know working parents in Lithgow are worried about the security of their families because they are struggling to meet their financial commitments.”

Mr Debus said Treasurer Costello’s recent $14 a week tax cut would make little difference to families that were stretched to breaking point because of skyrocketing household debt, unaffordable childcare and the rising price of petrol.

“This is life in a pressure-cooker,” said Mr Debus. “These new statistics show that Mr Howard has lost touch with the needs of today’s families.”