Disability Employment Services Reform

People with disabilities, including intellectual disabilities was to work - here's an opportunity to have some input into one aspect of how employment support can be informed:

Australia Social Services Minister Christian Porter announced the latest stage of the current review of the Disability Employment Services (DES) system this week.

The Australian Government wants to assist more people with disability into jobs so they can enjoy the social and economic benefits that work brings. 

The Disability Employment Services (DES) program plays an important role in supporting people with disability to gain employment in the open labour market. Current contracts with non-government organisations for the provision of DES cease in 2018. This presents an opportunity to consider possible changes to improve the program’s performance and achieve better employment outcomes for people with disability. 

The Australian Government commissioned the Disability Employment Taskforce in 2015 to review the disability employment framework and seek feedback from the disability sector to inform possible changes to DES to come into effect in 2018. 

Building on the work of the Taskforce, the discussion paper New Disability Employment Services from 2018outlines specific options for what a new model of DES could look like.

To find out more about this important issue and how you can have your say visit this page on the Dept Social services website.