A University of Queensland researcher is helping to put more cash into the kitty or Australia’s low-income earners.
Dr Marston, senior lecturer and convenor of the Social Policy Unit within the School of Social Work and Human Services, has been awarded a $60,000 UQ Foundation Research Excellence Award to investigate the financial lending practices of Australia’s fringe-economy and consumer experiences of accessing these services.
The UQ Foundation Research Excellence Awards have been run for 10 years and are an initiative of UQ to recognise outstanding performance and leadership potential in early career researchers.
Dr Marston defined the fringe-economy as financial services that target low-income people, businesses such as pay-day lenders, pawn shops and sub-prime mortgage services.
“We need to know how we can best regulate these financial services in the interests of a growing number of low-income Australians that use these services to make ends meet on a weekly and fortnightly basis,” Dr Marston said.
“Household debt is at record levels in Australia, which is not necessarily a problem when these debts are offset against assets, such as owning your own home.
“Unfortunately this is not the case for hundreds of thousands of low-income Australians who face spiralling debt and little or no asset base to fall back on.”
Dr Marston said financial counselling agencies around Australia had reported explosions in demand for their service with likely contributors including spiralling credit card debt, the housing affordability crisis in the private rental market and food and fuel price increases, among other factors.
“These conditions create a climate where people turn to the fringe-economy to make ends meet,” he said.
Dr Marston said the research project would identify the profiles of users of fringe financial services, including socio-demographic characteristics and patterns of use.
“I will also be comparing the Australian experience to that of other countries that are recording a growth in the fringe-economy and increasing numbers of people in low-paid work,” he said.
The 12-month research project will focus on Brisbane’s metro area and the regional centres of Cairns and Rockhampton.
Dr Marston will be seeking expert advice and input from Professor Howard Karger, Head of School of Social Work and Human Services, who has undertaken similar research about the United States.
He will also use the outcomes from the study to seek funding for a comparative cross-national investigation in Australia, the United States, New Zealand and Canada.
Media: Eliza Plant at UQ Communications on (07 3365 2619).
