The New Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement
The Australian aged care sector is facing significant workforce challenges, with an increasing demand for qualified direct care workers. To address this, the government has introduced the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement, a new initiative designed to streamline the recruitment of overseas workers. This agreement allows aged care providers to sponsor qualified direct care workers from abroad when local workers are unavailable.
Purpose of the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement
The Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement is specifically tailored for the aged care sector, focusing on three key direct care occupations:
- Nursing Support Worker (ANZSCO 423312)
- Personal Care Assistant (ANZSCO 423313)
- Aged or Disabled Carer (ANZSCO 423111)
Through this agreement, employers can nominate overseas workers for either the Temporary Skill Shortage (subclass 482) visa or the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) visa, helping to fill essential roles in the aged care sector more efficiently.
How to Apply for the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement
To benefit from the streamlined process, aged care providers must first enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the relevant industry unions:
- Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF): industrial@anmf.org.au
- Health Services Union (HSU): hsu@hsu.net.au
- United Workers Union (UWU): agedcarelabouragreements@unitedworkers.org.au
Once the MoU is in place, providers can submit a labour agreement request to the Department of Home Affairs through ImmiAccount. This step ensures that the labour market testing requirements are considered satisfied, simplifying the recruitment process.
Applying for a Visa under the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement
Overseas workers interested in applying for a visa under this agreement should first ensure their prospective employer has access to the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement. They will then need to confirm whether they have been nominated for a Temporary Skills Shortage visa (subclass 482) Labour Agreement Stream or Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186) Labour Agreement Stream.
Workers must also check if they need a skills assessment from either the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council or the Australian Community Workers Association, depending on their qualifications and experience.
Key Terms and Concessions
The Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement offers several important concessions to standard skilled visa requirements:
- Pathway to Permanent Residence: A two-year pathway to permanent residence through the Employer Nomination Scheme.
- Streamlined Processes: Streamlined visa nomination and priority visa application processing.
- Work Experience Requirements: No post-qualification work experience requirement.
- English Language Concessions: Lower English language requirements for workers with relevant community language skills.
- Minimum Salary: An annual salary of at least $51,222 AUD or the Australian Market Salary Rate, whichever is higher.
Qualifications and English Proficiency
To qualify, workers must hold a relevant AQF Certificate III or equivalent, OR have 12 months of relevant work experience in lieu of the qualification. They also need to meet English language proficiency levels, with a minimum IELTS score of 5.0 (or 4.5 for workers with target community language skills), and 5.5 for the Employer Nomination Scheme visa 482. Note that English proof is not required for skill assessment but for visa application only
Requirements for Workers
- Confirm employer’s access to the Labour Agreement.
- Skills Assessment: Do your skill assessment with any of these organisation:
- Nursing: Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council how to do skill assessment by ANMAC
- Community Work: Australian Community Workers Association How to do skill assessment by ACWA
- Qualifications:
- Relevant AQF Certificate III or equivalent, or 12 months of relevant work experience.
- English Proficiency:
- Minimum IELTS 5.0 (or 4.5 for certain community language speakers).
- IELTS 5.5 for Temporary Skill Shortage (subclass 482) visa.
- Work Experience:
- For subclass 186 visa: At least two years of relevant work experience in Australia.
Conclusion
The Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement is a significant step forward in addressing the workforce shortages in Australia’s aged care sector. By streamlining the recruitment of overseas workers and providing clear pathways to permanent residence, this initiative supports aged care providers in delivering high-quality care to the elderly and disabled. For more information, aged care providers and workers can contact the relevant industry unions and the Department of Home Affairs to begin the process.
