Message from the Chair of the CEO Council, Jemena and Deliotte COVID-19 Research Findings, Wendy Miller from QCOSS, We’ve got you, #Know Your Customers and Communities Shared Learning Platform and Powerlink’s Customer Panel Read More
The Australian population is far from homogenous. The 2016 Census revealed that more than a quarter (26%) of Australia’s population were born overseas, up from 25% in 2011. People who speak a language other than English at home make up roughly one fifth of the Australian population, rising to more than one quarter in the two most populous states and exceeding one half of the population of some areas of Sydney and Melbourne.
These communities share structural and institutional challenges in negotiating the energy market.
They are under-represented in a range of areas, including payment assistance programs, the use of Ombudsmen complaints and dispute resolution services, access to information and uptake of new services and technology.
ABS census statistics point to the over-representation of many CALD communities in the lowest two quintiles of the income spectrum. Often, they do not complain (or their complaints are not heard) which means their challenges and concerns may be overlooked unless specific mechanisms exist within the energy market to ensure that their interests are considered as business-as-usual practice.
In 2016, the ECCNSW published the Cultural Connections Guidelines aimed at guiding Australian energy retailers and distributors to engage with culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities, which included a case study from Energy Charter signatories EnergyAustralia and Jemena.
As part of the ongoing monitoring and evaluation of CALD strategies included in the guide, ECCNSW has followed up with a new 2020 report Continuing Cultural Connections: CALD best practice in a consumer centric energy market. This report reviews the progress of the energy sector in implementing CALD strategies with nine further case studies, of which Energy Charter signatories Jemena and Ausgrid took part.
“As part of Jemena’s recent New South Wales gas distribution pricing plan, we worked with the ECCNSW to arrange three forums for Arabic speakers, as we engaged with communities to better understand their journey to Australia and their unique perspectives on gas.
“We have done a lot of work to better understand our customers across our Jemena Electricity Network in Victoria and Jemena Gas Network in New South Wales, in particular during the COVID-19 pandemic. We wanted to make sure everyone had access to important messages and so we identified key CALD groups in our areas and have worked with our translation service providers to ensure our messaging is available in different languages across a variety of platforms.” – Kate Hawke, Marketing and Brand Manager, Jemena
Whilst there has been extensive work undertaken by energy businesses, regulators, agencies and Ombudsman schemes, the report highlights that progress has been slower than expected due to:
The survey instrument developed to assess CALD strategies identified two measures that will assist to ensure CALD consumers and their advocates are part of the conversation and maintain innovation and consistency of action across the sector for CALD consumers.
These were:
To address some of these concerns, Energy Charter COVID-19 customer communications have been translated widely for CALD consumers and we are sharing this information via the #BetterTogether – Energy Charter Communal Content Hub and “We’ve got you” customer information campaign. To provide a platform for CALD conversations around energy, Energy Charter signatories are also supporting an innovative energy literacy online ‘train the trainer’ program run by Voices for Power. The program is scheduled to commence shortly in Western Sydney with key learnings to be shared.
“We shared the Energy Charter’s translated student energy efficiency fact sheet and the ENA’s ‘$1 electricity gets me’ with our community partners: Care Financial, St Vincent De Paul and ACT Civil & Administrative Tribunal. Care Financial said: ‘This is great and so needed. We shall definitely be using these with our clients and I will forward this to our financial counsellors as well’ and passed them on further to Migrant and Refugee Settlement Services of the ACT.
These groups have direct contact with customers and members of the Canberra community in need of extra support to keep warm and on top of their energy bills this winter, so we know the resources will add value right where it’s needed. We’re also grateful to Energy Charter and Jemena for providing the translations, which enable us to empower Canberra’s diverse community.” – Charlie Sage, ActewAGL Senior Hardship Officer
In the analysis, ECCNSW said the single most important factor in helping to progress these projects has been the one-to-one conversations between ECCNSW and the businesses and agencies around CALD consultation and engagement.
“With some businesses and agencies ECCNSW has been able to provide various levels of support, including: employment for trained bilingual facilitator support to a project; timely reminders of their CALD engagement and consultation; and with others, advice and guidance on better practice for CALD engagement and consultation.” – Iain Maitland, Ethnic Communities’ Council of NSW
“It’s incredibly important to understand how COVID-19 is impacting people and identify ‘at risk’ communities, so that we communicate clearly, through the appropriate communication channels and put operations in place that quickly support them – particularly those experiencing unprecedented challenges. This is a social issue and we must work collaboratively across the energy supply chain to prove the value that we bring” – Andrew Davis, General Manager, Strategy and Commercial at Jemena
The research was conducted between 20-27 May 2020 via a series of survey questions to 921 respondents, broadly representing the demographics of Jemena’s Electricity Network customer base. The focus was to measure the nature and extent of change in customer circumstances, their primary concerns, and the challenges they foresee going forward for example:
In addition to this, the research also invited feedback from customers on new ideas and support models being proposed. The main themes arising from the customer survey include:
Decreasing incomes. Increasing unemployment – COVID 19 has led to many households being financially impacted. 44% of respondents reported a decrease in income. At the same time, 39% of respondents had their hours reduced or became unemployed. Given the forecasted rise in unemployment, the number of respondents experiencing income decreases and job losses is expected to increase.
Optimists vs. Pessimists – Most respondents fall into two buckets, those that believe COVID-19 will no longer impact them within the next 16 months (46%), and 23% that believe it’ll affect them for 10+months. This research was conducted prior to the second lockdown in Victoria.
Assistance will still be needed – Income supplements have cushioned some of the financial blow from COVID 19, with 27% of respondents receiving JobKeeper or JobSeeker payments. Nearly half of all respondents have however indicated that they are concerned with their ability to pay their bills once payments end.
Conditions won’t be favourable for a while – Hardship is anticipated to continue as economic conditions such as GDP and unemployment remain unfavourable. The recent second wave of COVID- 19 will most likely have a sustained impact on customer circumstances.
A clearer view of customer perceptions, concerns and expectations will better enable Jemena’s customer service and support models to continually adapt to the pandemic and the evolving challenges it presents. Importantly, Jemena is working collaboratively across the 19 Energy Charter signatories to share these customer insights and further inspire support for all Australians impacted by COVID-19.
Download the full report: Jemena COVID- 19 Customer Hardship Customer Research Insights Report, June 2020
Message from the Chair of the CEO Council, Jemena and Deliotte COVID-19 Research, Mark Henley from United Communities, #BetterTogether Customer Code for Energy Brokers and Retailers and APA’s Amadeus Digital Engagement Read More
This was distributed to customers across 265 bushfire-impacted postcodes, providing bill relief to impacted customers or giving them the opportunity to pay it forward to support local cafés, retail and other small businesses in the area. An example of the Energy Charter principles in action.
Fast forward only two months from the bushfires to COVID-19, and the ‘Power It Forward’ program was launched again this time to support Powershop’s small business customers doing it tough. By putting customers at the centre of their business, Powershop have leveraged their community network to support vulnerable customers and improve their customer experience.
“We wanted to do something together with our customers, to help those who have been most affected by COVID-19. The Power It Forward program has been designed to support the community connection between our customers and it’s just one way we can provide some relief for small businesses that are on the road to recovery.” Jason Stein, CEO Powershop.
With a kick-start contribution of $50,000, and a pledge to match customer contributions dollar for dollar up to $100,000, the Powershop goal is to raise $250,000 that will be used to support Powershop’s small business customers facing vulnerable circumstances. This is how an agile corporate response puts the Energy Charter principles directly into effect for customers.
The money contributed to the ‘Power It Forward’ fund will be distributed to eligible small business customers to provide financial relief on their energy bills. To support the program, Powershop is also actively checking in on their small business customers and offering advice about accessing other support services if they need it.
“This program is an opportunity for our customers to do what was always in their nature to do. Time and time again, we’ve seen our customers go above and beyond to support their community” but also the environment. It’s a privilege to manage a program that facilitates and deepens our customers’ connection with the Powershop community and is a reflection of our commitments as a member of the Energy Charter.” Monica Cheah, Marketing Engagement Lead, Powershop.
Beyond ‘Power It Forward’, Powershop has a range of support options available to both residential and business customers impacted by COVID-19. For more information click here.
The Energy Charter CEO Council, made up of 19 CEOs across the Australian energy sector, is pleased to announce the 2020-2022 Independent Accountability Panel. Ben Wilson, Chair of the CEO Council and CEO of AGIG said “I am delighted to welcome Clare Petre, as the Chair of the Independent Accountability Panel, to join ongoing panel members Dr Cassandra Goldie and Mr Andrew Richards for the next three years. Read More
Message from the Chair of the CEO Council, COVID-19 We’ve Got You campaign, Rachelle Gill from Energy Policy WA , #BetterTogether initiatives, and the Industry Working Group 2020 Ways of Working Read More
Gavin Dufty, Policy and Research and St Vincent de Paul Society and member of the Energy Charter End User Consultative Group (EUCG) comments, “we are helping less people on government pensions and payments, and more overseas students, migrants and refugees with no income, and casual workers who have lost jobs. This change is largely due to the additional government support of one-off payments, and the jobseeker and jobkeeper programs.” (1)
Foodbank Australia have also made a similar observation…“It’s still too early to fully understand the economic and employment impact of COVID-19, but we know that many people who need access to support haven’t had to do so before, as we’re seeing many new faces asking for help—particularly international students with no support network” said Ian Laing, General Manger at Foodbank Australia. (2)
The reality of this situation for students was also evident to La Trobe Student Union Environment Officer, Jake McGuinness. Jake works with La Trobe University and the Australian National Union of Students (NUS) to promote sustainability and environmental advocacy for students and views his role as being the student bodies’ eyes, ears and voice in the room. “It’s important to ensure students’ voices are actually included in the discussion” Jake says.
To support students during this pandemic and help make a difference, Jake reached out to his mum, Kate Goatley – Acting Manager Regulatory & Compliance at ActewAGL Retail. Kate represents ActewAGL in the Energy Charter, and along with the regular Industry Working Group meetings, Kate collaborates through the ‘COVID-19 Response Team’ and #BetterTogether ‘Getting concessions to the right people’ initiatives.
“Working groups are the highlight of my involvement with the Energy Charter. Meeting and working closely with such disparate businesses who operate right across the supply chain, I am frequently energised by the people and ideas to which I’m exposed. I’m seeing and hearing such a genuine desire to find ways to deliver better outcomes for customers and to think outside of the box. It’s inspiring. Attending the EUCG and hearing directly from the advocates about what they’re seeing ‘on the ground’ as a result of events such as the bushfires and COVID-19 have been powerful, regular reminders of who needs to be at the heart of things—the customer” Kate said.
Together, Kate and Jake, proudly supported by the Energy Charter, co-designed an Energy Efficiency resource for students, particularly for those in shared houses, to highlight the easy and practical ways they can reduce their energy use at home and lower their energy bill. In addition, the student Student Affordability resource provides state specific help and advice including how to lower bills, manage paying bills, financial assistance and self-meter reading. Hyperlinks to key information and webpages extends across the energy sector from energy retailers, Energy Networks Australia, the Australian Energy Regulator to state-based Energy and Water Ombudsman. #BetterTogether
“It was great when my son reached out with his idea of creating a simple and clear resource for students to help them navigate the vast array of information around managing their energy and bills, particularly at this time” Kate said.
The Australian National Union of Students is the peak body representing the rights of students across Australia. Together, with the Energy Charter, the NUS distributed these resources through university digital channels and online spaces to international and Australian students around the country. #BetterTogether
Source:
(1) Energy Charter May News Update
(2) Thriving Communities Partnership Blog – COVID-19 Ian Laing, Foodbank Australia
COVID-19 message from the Chair of the CEO Council, #BetterTogether initiatives, Gavin Dufty from St Vincent de Paul, Gerard Reilly – Chair of the Industry Working Group and 2020 disclosure process Read More
Message from the incoming Chair of the CEO Council Ben Wilson, CEO of Australian Gas Infrastructure Group (AGIG), #BetterTogether initiatives, Chris Alexander from Energy Consumers Australia and April Progress Update Read More