Work obligations - partners

Full-time work obligations apply to:

• partners with no dependent children and
• partners with a youngest dependent child aged 14 years or over

Part-time work obligations apply to:

• partners with a youngest dependent child aged between 3 and 13 years

Partners with work obligations must:

• be available for, and take reasonable steps to obtain, suitable employment
• accept any offer of suitable employment, including temporary employment or seasonal employment

Note suitable employment can include employment that contains a 90 day employment trial.

• attend and participate in an interview for any opportunity of suitable employment to which the partner is referred
• when required to attend and participate in any interview with MSD or on behalf of MSD
• when required to undertake planning for employment
• report to MSD on progress in meeting their work obligations as often as required and
• when required by MSD, undertake any activity to improve their work readiness and employment prospects, including:
  • any work assessment
  • any programme or seminar
  • any work experience or work exploration activity
  • any employment related training and
  • rehabilitation (but not medical treatment)

Partners with full-time work obligations must be available for, and take reasonable steps to find, suitable employment of at least 30 hours or more per week.

Partners with part-time work obligations must be available for, and take reasonable steps to find, suitable employment of at least 20 hours per week.

However if suitable employment is available for hours other than 20 or 30 hours per week (as applicable), the partner can be required to accept an offer of this job.

Work obligations can be applied on any day of the week provided it is suitable for the partner's circumstances.

If a partner does not meet their work obligations, without a good and sufficient reason, you should initiate an obligations failure.

You should consider the partner's individual circumstances before referring them to a job or an activity, to ensure that they can realistically meet their obligations.

To help you decide if the job is suitable for the partner see:

• Suitable employment
• Hours range for suitable employment