The State Government will provide $7.5 million to increase wages for non-government disability support workers, with Disability Services Minister Sheila McHale saying the sector had found it increasing difficult to keep staff.
The full text of a ministerial announcement is pasted below
The State Government will provide $7.5 million a year to increase wages for non-government disability support workers in Western Australia.
Disability Services Minister Sheila McHale said the Carpenter Government had acknowledged it was becoming harder to attract and retain disability support workers in the current economic boom.
"We are concerned the disability sector is increasingly unable to fill direct care vacancies and is struggling to keep staff," Ms McHale said.
"If this is not addressed, the viability of services to thousands of people with disabilities could be under threat.
"We need to provide competitive wages if we are to attract and retain the best people to work with vulnerable people."
The Minister said the funding would mean an average of $33 extra a week for non-government carers who helped people with disabilities live independently within the community or in supported accommodation.
"These workers do a tremendously important job in our community," she said.
"I hope the funding will encourage direct care staff to stay in the sector and help others seriously consider a career in this field."
Ms McHale said the Howard Government's industrial relations system had hit the sector hard and wages had not been able to keep pace.
The Minister said a comprehensive recruitment and workforce-planning campaign had helped raise the profile of direct care work as a rewarding career and had resulted in a significant number of inquiries about the occupation.
Ms McHale said the Carpenter Government was making long-term decisions to increase jobs and opportunities for the benefit of all Western Australians.
