People who were born with a disability or have suffered a disability later in life often believe that it spells the end of having any chance of gaining employment. This is not the case at all and there are a number of disability employment support programs in place designed specifically to assist disabled people to find their way back into the job market and become gainfully employed.
While having some form of disability certainly presents more challenges than normal, it’s still possible to get a job and keep a job and in this article, we’ll take a closer look at some of the disability employment services available to you.
Much of the support comes in the form of government initiatives, but job seekers with disabilities can also find help from other sources as well. We’ll now go over a few programs offered by the government, often run in conjunction with local Jobactive providers (companies that assist unemployed people find work and become work-ready).
DES Employment Services
“DES” represents “Disability Employment Services”. Essentially it means connecting those with a disability with the various types of support services available to assist disabled people to find a job. Disability also includes people who are suffering from health conditions or have an injury.
It’s not just about assisting people in finding a job, but also in keeping that job. DES focuses on preparing people with an injury, health condition, or disability for the world of employment by empowering them with skills, personal development, and other attributes to give them a better chance of finding employment.
DES is administered by DES providers, such as Jobactive providers and other for-profit and non-profit organizations.
The type of services you’ll be able to access will really depend on the amount of support you need and how severe the disability is. The first step is to undergo an assessment, which could be one of the following:
- JCA – Job Capacity Assessment
- Employment Services Assessment
These assessments determine the extent of your disability and also help the assistance provider work out what type of employment you would be suited to and how many hours per week you could potentially work.
The assessments also determine if you’re eligible for Disability Employment Services. If you are, then you’ll receive either ongoing occasional, or regular support to keep a job.
The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)
The NDIS scheme is another government initiative that’s designed to offer support for people with disabilities. This support also branches out to assist family members and carers of disabled people as well.
It’s aimed at people with permanent and significant disabilities, enabling these individuals to receive the support they need to achieve goals, and ambitions and find gainful employment.
NDIS employment services are tailored to help people with a disability get ready for the workforce, find a job, and receive ongoing assistance so they can keep that job.
When it comes to NDIS employment assistance, there is also a special scheme directed at school leavers with a disability, so they don’t commence their adult life feeling like they’re up against it when attempting to get into the workforce.
In the scheme, school leavers receive support tailored specifically for the individual. This includes skill-building and confidence building so they can transition from school to work as seamlessly as possible.
The Government Offers Wage Subsidies
To further encourage potential employers to consider hiring a person with a disability, the government offers several wage subsidy programs and incentive schemes. This also comes under the Disability Employment Services scheme.
Employers are sometimes hesitant to hire a less able-bodied person due to the financial risk it could impose on their business, with the rationale being that a disabled person won’t be as productive as an able-bodied employee.
For this reason, the government offers employers a wage subsidy to offset any financial burden, and therefore employers are far more likely to hire someone with a disability because of this incentive.
The Supported Wage System is another initiative. In this scheme, disabled people are paid on a productivity basis rather than time-based or by the hour. This ensures fair payment for the amount of work accomplished.
The Takeaway
There is quite a lot of support and assistance available for people with a disability to enter the workforce, so finding gainful employment is certainly far from being an unachievable goal.