By Jenni Allan, CEO of ADSSI Limited

My colleagues and I applaud the recent announcement of the Fair Work Commission’s (FWC) interim decision on its Work value case – Aged care industry recommending a 15% pay increase for some classifications of aged care workers in Australia, with the possibility of more and wider-reaching wage increases in the future.

Our hardworking direct care staff (aged care, disability, and clinical) are at the heart of our work. Seeing their continued commitment and support for our client community throughout a tough few years of COVID-19 restrictions has been inspiring. I hope that the FWC can see how vital all workers in the home care sector are and extend the wage increase to all direct care staff.

With modelling prepared for the Commission estimating that 70% more full-time equivalent workers are needed by 2050 to maintain current staffing levels, I was pleased to see that their recommendation to review ‘existing job’ classifications and map out career pathways for roles such as nurses, personal care workers and other workers to advance in the aged care sector, was acknowledged by the FWC.

Aged (and disability) care are noble sectors, and there are many opportunities for someone to start and grow their career in these sectors. This is something about which we at ADSSI are very passionate. Spanning four locations in the Hunter and the Central Coast, ADSSI is a large organisation loaded with career opportunities, ranging from entry-level and traineeships to corporate and executive roles.