Skiba and Secretary, Department of Employment (Social services second review)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered an application by Ms Skiba concerning her Newstart allowance. The dispute centred on whether Ms Skiba committed a "connection failure" by refusing to enter into a job plan with her employment services provider on 17 August 2015, and if so, whether she had a reasonable excuse for this failure.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were twofold: first, whether Ms Skiba's refusal to enter into a job plan on 17 August 2015 constituted a connection failure under the relevant legislation; and second, if a connection failure was established, whether Ms Skiba possessed a reasonable excuse for her non-compliance.

The Tribunal found that Ms Skiba had indeed committed a connection failure, as she was in receipt of the Newstart allowance and had failed to comply with the requirement to enter into a job plan. In determining whether Ms Skiba had a reasonable excuse, the Tribunal referred to the legislative framework, including the Administration Act and the Reasonable Excuse Determination, as well as guidance from the Guide to Social Security Law. This guidance indicated that a reasonable excuse should be one that an ordinary member of the community would accept as reasonable, and that the failure should not be a deliberate act of non-compliance. The Tribunal did not accept Ms Skiba's claimed concern about alleged errors in a letter from her provider as a reasonable excuse, finding instead that this concern was raised to avoid engaging with the job plan negotiation process and did not significantly affect her capacity to comply. Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision made by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (Social Services and Child Support Division) on 19 February 2016.