The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) is to launch a new employment strategy aimed at empowering people with disability to enter the workforce successfully.
Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), Stuart Robert said the strategy supported NDIS participants to succeed in employment opportunities, with a goal of having 30 per cent of working-age in employment by 30 June 2023.
“This strategy is all about giving more people with disability, who have the desire and capacity to work, better access to the right supports to achieve their employment goals while breaking down barriers that they face trying to get a job,” Mr Robert said.
‘[It] continues the positive momentum right across the NDIS as thousands of Australians enter the scheme every week.”
He said the NDIS Employment Strategy was part of the considered and calibrated work being undertaking to improve the NDIS so it can reach its full potential.
He said that guided by the strategy over the next three years, the NDIA is to work to remove barriers to employment for Australians with disabilities and assist NDIS participants to accomplish their own employment goals.
“This will include ensuring a discussion about employment opportunities is at the forefront of NDIS participant planning conversations,” the Minister said.
He said the strategy was informed by consultation with participants, the sector and Government and had five key areas of focus: Increase participant aspiration and employment goals in NDIS plans; Increase participant choice and control over pathways to employment; Increase marketing innovations that improve the path to paid work; Improve confidence of employers to employ NDIS participants, and; Lead by example as an employer.
He referred to the plansto increase employment for people with disability in the Australian Public Service to seven per cent, congratulating the NDIA which reported that at 30 June this year, 11.85 per cent of its employees were living with disability, clearly the APS leader so far.
The NDIS Participant Employment Strategy can be accessed at this PS News link.