Aged care industry labour agreement

RDA Orana has welcomed the Australian Government’s announcement of an aged care industry labour agreement, which will help to streamline the recruitment of qualified direct care workers from overseas to work in the aged care sector.

The Labour Agreement will allow aged care providers to use temporary and permanent sponsored skilled visas to fill vacancies in direct care occupations in the aged care sector. It will also provide protections and support for migrant workers while ensuring aged care providers continue to support existing local workers and actively recruit from the domestic workforce pool.

The agreement will provide workers hired under the agreement aged below 45 years with a flexible, expedited 2-year pathway to permanent residence. There is no post-qualification work experience requirement, which allows aged care providers to recruit workers who have recently received their qualifications and English language concessions are available for workers with community language skills employed by culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) aged care providers.

To access this Labour Agreement, employers must first enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the relevant union/s. Union participation provides additional support for migrant workers and strikes a balance between facilitation and management of aged care worker migration, ensuring the benefits flow equally to aged care providers and their workforce

Employer requirements:

• enter into MoU with the relevant union/s
• comply with terms set out in the Labour Agreement
• the obligations under the Labour Agreement will align with the obligations applicable to Standard Business Sponsors
• payment of the Skilling Australians Fund levy at nomination stage and standard application fees.

For further information visit: www.smartmoveaustralia.gov.au