Dynamic properties of income support receipt in Australia

Abstract

Using administrative records on Australian income support (welfare) recipients over the period July 1995 to June 2002, we examine dynamic properties of income support receipt and the personal characteristics associated with alternative patterns of receipt. We draw on three concepts: churning - the process of ending a spell on income support and subsequently commencing a new spell; transferring - moving from one payment type to another within a spell on income support; and Total Time On payments (TTO) - the proportion of time on income support in a given period. We find that churning and transferring are significant features of income support receipt in Australia. For example, over half of re..