As a jobseeker it is very useful to know about any subsidies and assistance that you may be eligible for if employed.

As a job seeker with a disability you may feel strongly that you want to be employed solely on merit, however in a competitive environment subsidies and assistance might help you get the job, which is the main goal.

The Federal Government provides a range of financial assistance to employers.

Wage Subsidies

Wage subsidies are a financial incentive paid to employers to encourage them to hire eligible participants in ongoing jobs. Wage subsidies help with the initial costs of hiring a new employee. They can help to build a business and give employers greater flexibility in their hiring options.

Examples of wage subsidies include:
Youth Bonus 15 to 24 years of age (includes people with a disability)

Youth 25 to 29 years of age (includes people with a disability)

Restart people 50 years of age and over (including people with a disability)

Parents people of any age who are a principal carer or parent

Long Term Unemployed for employees of any age who have been registered with an employment services provider for 12 months

See Get Started for more information about Wage Subsidies.

Employment Assistance Fund (EAF)
The EAF is available to eligible people with disability who are about to start a job, are self-employed or who are currently working. This includes people with disability who need Auslan assistance or special work equipment to look for and prepare for a job.

This funding covers the costs of making these workplace changes.
The EAF could help to buy work related modifications and services like:

– making adjustments to your physical workplace;

– modifications to work vehicles;

– special equipment for the workplace;

– information and communication devices;

– Auslan interpreting services;

– specialist services for employees with specific learning disorders and mental health conditions;

– disability awareness training for the workplace (including deafness awareness);

– mental health awareness and first aid training.

See Get Started for more information on the EAF.

Disability Employment Service Providers
There are 88 Disability Employment Service providers across the Tasmania ready to assist you. Assistance is open to both prospective employers and employees. Disability Employment Service (DES) providers promote and assist the employment of people with disability by:

– assisting people with disability to find work in open employment situations;

– assisting employers to employ people with disability;

– supporting the ongoing employment of people with disability.

See Get Started for the link to the DES Provider Search tool.

Why aren’t more people with disabilities being employed?

Many employers have the desire to employ people with a disability, however there is evidence that employers remain unaware of how to go about actively employing a person with a disability.

The EAF is underutilised and most recent evidence is that DES outcomes are very low. In 2018, the Federal Government introduced a series of reforms, however the 2020 mid-term review of the DES program shows that the number of employment outcomes for participants has only increased by 8%.

The mid-term review found 6 key challenges facing the DES program:

– mixed quality of service amongst providers;

– insufficient flexibility in the program rules to allow for innovation;

– excessive complexity and lack of clarity;

– ineffective market mechanisms;

– poor alignment with adjacent programs, especially poor integration with the NDIS, causing confusion for participants and employers’

– a growth in the cost-per outcome.

The review produced a range of recommendation, including eligibility changes, redesign of programs, encouragement of flexibility, addressing common employer concerns about hiring someone with disability, and working with the NDIA to improve deployment of NDIS funding with on-the-job and classroom support.

See Get Started to access the full report.