A performance audit of the Department of Education, Skills and Employment’s (DESE) use and administration of wage subsidies has been found to be largely effective, supporting the subsidies’ purposes and ensuring policy objectives are achieved.
In his Report, Use and Administration of Wage Subsidies, Auditor-General, Grant Hehir said wage subsidies had been a long-standing part of employment programs in Australia.
“They aim to increase employment opportunities for job seekers by providing a financial incentive to employers, primarily by contributing to the initial costs of hiring a new employee,” Mr Hehir said.
He said the Audit investigated the extent to which the DESE monitored and evaluated if wage subsidies improved employment opportunities for employment program participants, by assisting job seekers into work and meeting employer needs.
“The DESE’s contractual framework, program guidelines, systems and compliance program support the assessment, processing and payment of wage subsidies, while the monitoring, reporting and evaluation of wage subsidies have been largely effective,” Mr Hehir said.
“Guidelines and supporting documentation are clear and updated at regular intervals.”
He said, however, monitoring and performance reporting could still be improved as reporting was focused on participation outputs rather than the impact of wage subsidies on improving employment outcomes.
The Audit made one recommendation, relating to the performance measurement and reporting on the wage subsidies. This was agreed to by the DESE.
The 66-page Report can be accessed at this PS News link or online at this link and the Audit team was Renina Boyd, Evan Lee, Sonya Carter and Peta Martyn.
