This article was first published in eMessenger in December 2020.
The Advent story is one where expectant parents are living in uncertainty and uncertain times. I think Mary and Joseph would have been pretty stressed with events happening to them that were beyond their control, venturing into the future with great trepidation and on top of it all there is a baby due soon. They had to travel and find somewhere to live which turned out to be extremely difficult. Mary ended up giving birth in a pretty unhygienic place. And weird things kept happening to them, like shepherds turning up, angels appearing and then total strangers bearing gifts.
The whānau/families the Methodist Alliance members work with have a lot in common with the holy family. They are all navigating the unknown, the inexplicable, and the extraordinary. They are battling things beyond their control and life is uncertain and not in a good way.
2020 has been full of the unknown, the inexplicable, and the extraordinary. Not all of it good. Everyone has experienced living with uncertainty and finding out just how uncomfortable and unsettling that can be. For some COVID-19 Alert Level 4 was a time to reconnect with family and enjoying stress free family time. For others it was a time of stress, extra work demands, isolation from family, restriction of freedoms, and significant disruption to normal life. Some people lost their jobs, their security and their homes. Life is very uncertain for them and no one knows what the future will bring. Life will never go back to normal. And perhaps that is a good thing?
Advent is a time of reflection and celebration. We reflect on 2020 with all the changes it has brought and we can celebrate about how we were able to adapt, to be open to new perspectives and fresh thinking, to be humble in the face of challenges, to be brave, to confront our fears, and to take courage in working in different ways.
We can also celebrate that COVID-19 has given us an opportunity. The opportunity to see the inequalities in society. The opportunity to say that it is time to change. The opportunity to address the inequalities and to ensure that everyone has a better and more certain future. Sonya Renee Taylor talks about this being an opportunity for us to use this extraordinary time to look beyond the obvious and challenge the systems in our society we need to change.[1] This is a time to question our assumptions and think systemically for the benefit of all humanity.
And this is just what the Methodist Alliance is doing. We issued a media statement at the beginning of Advent urging the government to address the inadequacy of benefits, and income threshold at which benefits are cut so that beneficiaries can get back to work and lift themselves out of poverty.
We asked for the abatement threshold to be raised. This is the amount of money a beneficiary can earn before their benefit is cut. It was set up in 1986 based on 15 hours work per week at the minimum wage, which at the time, represented $80 per week. In April, the Government increased the abatement threshold to $90 per week, which equates to just below 4.8 hours per week at the minimum wage.
This threshold provides a disincentive to work. If you are receiving a benefit, the amount you can earn and the amount that is deducted is dependent on what benefit you are receiving. If a single person without dependent children receiving the benefit accepts part-time work and earns more than the $90 a week limit, they may see only a few extra dollars a week in their pocket, once abatement rates have reduced their benefit. Added to this the cost of their social housing costs may increase. They would probably incur work-related costs like travel, childcare and have the uncertainty of changing benefit levels each week.
The 2019 Budget brought in a slow increase in the abatement rates – see in the table below and the Labour Government promised in September 2020 to raise the abatement thresholds to $160 a week for jobseeker and sole parent support and $250 a week for sole parent support and the supported living payment. However these proposed increases will need to go through the legislative process.
The Methodist Alliance challenged Government to put in place the recommendations of the Welfare Expert Advisory Group report Whakamana Tāngata: Restoring Dignity to Social Security in New Zealand. The benefit levels recommended in this report would give those receiving a benefit a liveable income and provide a way out of the current poverty trap that people are often caught in.
And we are challenging Te Hahi Weteriana also – what is the Methodist Church going to do to address the inequities that COVID-19 has brought? What can we do to make life better for everyone? How do we marry word & deed and the wider gospel imperative to be Good News to the Poor? How can we be the hope, the love, the joy, and the peace this Advent?
Feel free to contact me with your thoughts, ideas, inspirational messages, energy and enthusiasm. Feel free to send a message of thanks to your local Methodist Mission and thank them and their workers for the amazing job they do.
Whatever this Christmas season brings, due to the uncertain times we live in, it may have more in common with the extraordinary first Christmas story.
If you would like more information about how you can support the Methodist Alliance, the Methodist Missions, or to join the campaign workgroup to increase benefit and abatement rates, please contact me.
Wishing you love and peace this Christmas - may it bring a time of rest, relaxation and peace.
Carol Barron, Methodist Alliance National Coordinator
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cwd-lxgrHc
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