Bardy authored an article published by the Canberra Times, indicating a likely rise in poverty and unemployment due to increased taxation during the coronavirus condition. The report focused on the Jobseeker payment in Australia that faced a new rate. The payment that focused on relieving people from plunging into poverty during the current pandemic would no longer meet its objectives, as stated in its program (Bardy 2021). If more people got into poverty, the cumulative figure would rise to around 4 million, pointing to a total increase of more than a million (Bardy 2021). However, only 9500 Australians would be lifted out of the same situation if the payment remained as before.
The modeling that led to the conclusion used various figures for adults. The primary target was earnings, and numbers $310 a week, some $560 a fortnight, and $625 in 2 weeks were considered (Bardy 2021). These figures added to the number that never had any jobs before the pandemic, with some struggling to set up their businesses simultaneously (BBC News 2021b). The government on its side defended the move while trying to justify the new measures’ benefits, a move that would still not benefit the country. Thus, the increase in taxation threatens both people trying to establish their business and those who already have a job.
The author provides relevant concerns on the government’s need to reconsider the payment cuts for people without jobs. Mostly, it isn’t easy seeking and successfully getting employment due to the situation arising (Kawol & Nordt 2020). Reducing the payment only means people will have to seek extra money for their use and sometimes get to poverty. It is also unclear when the economy would stabilize again amid the COVID-19 situation (Australian Government no date). Helpless citizens need more intervention by the government to remain stable before they can resume their jobs. These issues are significant in avoiding any calamities that would arise from the country’s lack of employment (Gilfillan 2020). It would be better to reduce its spending on non-urgent development programs to contain the current looming poverty.
Although some concepts of the arguments are compelling, for the most part, the findings and arguments do not look quite convincing. The number of people earning different figures a week or a fortnight could vary, depending on the changes in their lives. The authors needed to find information about those who got some employment and use the model to recalculate the figures. The government’s measures to revive the economy may also lead to new employment opportunities that may result in more jobs (Visontay 2021). Expectations about the end of the pandemic could lead to more opportunities, a factor that does not feature in the author’s analysis (BBC News 2021a). These considerations could be pointers to new economic development and increased revenue by the government and people.
Given the insufficient number of factors studied in detail and the need for further, deeper analysis of the existing meanings and situations, this article is not convincing enough. Despite their significance and importance, the concepts used are not helpful in further studying the economy due to insufficient in-depth analysis. The existing article touches upon many important topics; however, most of them are practically not disclosed, which complicates the understanding of both the text and applying this study to economics.
Bardy’s analysis focuses on macroeconomic factors, viewed in the context of the spreading COVID-19 pandemic, which affects the entire economy. Difficulty finding a job leads to changes in key concepts such as demand and supply curves. As a result of job losses, people who needed money to cushion them during the hard times increased. With the government providing the same amount to the JobSeekers, the figures had to reduce significantly over the period. According to Balleer, Link, Menkhoff, and Zorn (2020), the public’s high demand meant a low or reduction of the government’s number of funds. Other issues identified included unemployment rates that may lead to a rise in credit value by the citizens within the period.
Though these numbers were evident in the article, the author does not use exact economic principles in his work. The primary focus was on the well-being of the people affected. The text’s main emphasis was placed on the presentation of statistics, which were exceptionally poorly explained. As mentioned above, the entire text looks very unclear due to preliminary analysis, which complicates its understanding. In particular, interpretation is complicated due to insufficiently clear use of terms or their complete absence. A reader can guess that specific terms are implied, but they are not indicated directly.
I have to give the authors credit for presenting a concept that is currently worrying every state in the world. According to Strauss (2020), unemployment rates rise daily and subject people to sufferings and economic distress. Governments cushioning people through relief payments is becoming tricky if they cannot collect revenues too. The effects on the social life and economics of the country are highlighted. Poverty is difficult to handle, and the state could use this article as a revelation to their plans. Despite the excellent approach to highlight Australians’ plight, the article needed to incorporate every factor that may lead to a twist in the economic situation shortly. These would include the likely increased earnings by the people if more employment opportunities were explored. The methods applied by the government to revive the economy also differed and never brought in better results over time. I would also have considered how this trend changed over the last year by bringing in the monthly analysis of drops in employment and earnings. Doing so would reveal the critical concepts that the government needs to handle as they revive the economy.
References
Australian Government, no date, Analysis of Australia’s food security and the COVID-19 pandemic, Web.
Balleer, A, Link, S, Menkhoff, M, Zorn, P 2020, Demand or supply? Price adjustment during the COVID-19 pandemic, CESifo Working Paper No. 8394. Web.
Bardy, D.J 2021, JobSeeker cut to plunge Canberrans into poverty, new analysis, Canberra Times, Web.
BBC News 2021a, COVID: Brisbane lockdown ends ahead of Easter weekend, Web.
BBC News 2021b, UN: Covid jobs crisis ‘most severe’ since the 1930s, Web.
Gilfillan, G 2020, COVID-19: Labour market impacts on key demographic groups, industries and regions, Web.
Kawol, W and Nordt, C 2020, COVID-19, unemployment, and suicide, Lancet Psychiatry, Vol. 7, Iss. 5, pp. 389-390. Web.
Strauss, D 2020, Hidden joblessness threatens economic recovery in US and Europe, Financial Times. Web.
Visontay, E 2021, End of December more realistic target for all Australians to get Covid vaccine, AMA says. The Guardian, Web.