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The Federal Budget was handed down on Tuesday night and we've been asking our communities about the expected impacts.
The feeling is while there have been wins for businesses and those wanting apprenticeships; women, those in aged care and social housing have missed out.
Wollongong Deputy Lord Mayor Tania Brown told the Illawarra Mercury it was a "budget for the boys".
While Community Industry Group CEO Nicky Sloan said unemployment was high across the NSW Illawarra region and the NSW South Coast, tax cuts did "nothing" for those without a job.
She said the $240 million announced under the Women's Economic Security Statement was "beyond underwhelming" as it equated to only about $40 per woman in the workforce.
"It's tokenistic at best," she said.
In the NSW Hunter Valley, the feeling that women had been left out was echoed.
After giving birth to her first child eight weeks ago, hairdresser Allana Robson had been looking to the budget as potentially influencing her return to work.
Mrs Robson had been planning to build up to returning full-time, she told the Newcastle Herald, but this was now unlikely in the absence of a new subsidy, rebate or price cap for childcare.
In Tasmania, the peak housing advocacy body Shelter Tas said the budget provided little comfort for people who were homeless, or at risk of homelessness, and others facing mounting housing pressures.
Chairwoman Andrea Witt told The Advocate Shelter Tas was "gravely concerned about how the predicted rising unemployment and loss of income lead to more and more Tasmanians unable, for the first time, to pay their rents and mortgages".
While there were some wins with cash payments for seniors, Combined Pensioners and Superannuants Association found it "disappointing" the lack of commitment to permanently increase the JobSeeker payment or support older people getting back to work.
Policy manager Paul Versteege told The Senior before COVID-19, there were 196,000 people over 55 on unemployment benefits.
"The chance of them finding employment was low then, but now there are 318,000 people over 55 on unemployment benefits."
He said JobSeeker without the COVID-19 supplement was $565.70 per fortnight - almost 40 per cent less than the pension ($933.40 a fortnight).
However, trade employers are happy. Kelso Electrical Pty Ltd director Brad Schumacher from NSW's Central Tablelands told the Western Advocate the subsidies gave businesses the confidence to hire more staff when they might otherwise have been reluctant to grow.
"If there's a subsidy for business owners to relieve a portion of the wage of apprentices, there's going to be a better chance they're going to hire these kids."
Northern NSW based Obieco HR manager Fiona Sweeney, from Tamworth, agreed, saying without businesses able to provide opportunities to apprentices, the long-term viability of those industries in the region wasn't guaranteed.
"We have actually committed to taking on two new spray-painting apprentices and one adult metal fabrication apprentice," she said.
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