The Australian Government has committed $6.8 million to pilot an employment incentive that will provide job opportunities for 1000 Australians who receive the Disability Support Pension (DSP).
The Disability Support Pension Employment Incentive Pilot will trial a new way of encouraging employers to offer employment opportunities to people with disability and allow DSP recipients to demonstrate their skills.
Employers will be supported through wage subsidies of up to $3000 after the job seeker has remained in work for 26 weeks. Normal income taper rates will apply to DSP recipients who participate in the pilot.
The pilot is part of the Government’s National Mental Health and Disability Employment Strategy.
Breaking down the barriers
The rate of employment of people with a disability is still well below that of people without a disability and today more people with psychiatric and physical disabilities are accessing disability employment services.
People with disability want to work, whether a person is recovering from serious injury, the onset of illness or impairment or managing a disability since birth.
Work is one of the most significant ways people can participate socially and economically in their communities.
The incentive will raise awareness of the support available to employers and will encourage them to provide sustainable job opportunities to people with disability.
How it works
The Disability Support Pension Employment Incentive Pilot will commence on 1 March 2010, to coincide with the start of the new Disability Employment Services and will end on 29 February 2012.
The pilot wage subsidy is only available through Disability Employment Services. The Disability Employment Service provider will pay the employer a subsidy of up to $3000 after the participant has been employed for 26 weeks.
Employers who have a vacancy will be able to ask their local Disability Employment Service provider for the position be filled by a person who is eligible for the Disability Support Pension Employment Incentive Pilot.
The Disability Employment Service provider will help identify, recruit, prepare and support people with disability participating in the pilot.
Disability Employment Service providers will also encourage employers to consider employing a person receiving the DSP, by promoting the incentive.
Eligibility and claiming
The incentive will be paid to employers who engage DSP job seekers for eight hours or more each week for 26 weeks and who are being assisted by Disability Employment Services.
At the end of the 26 week period, the employer can claim the wage subsidy from the Disability Employment Service provider that placed the job seeker with them as part of the pilot.
Employers who provide jobs to people as part of Job Services Australia will not be eligible for a wage subsidy under this pilot. This is because Job Services Australia providers can use the Employment Pathway Fund to provide flexible wage subsidies to employers where this is in the best interest of the job seeker.