Aged care manager recruitment for regional employers

Health and welfare services managers plan, direct and coordinate the clinical and administrative side of a service, from budgets and policy to selecting and supervising staff.¹ In aged care that can mean running a residential home, leading a home care service across a district, or directing nursing care as director of nursing.

Under the Aged Care Act 2024, a registered nurse responsible for the overall management of a provider's nursing services, and the person responsible for the day-to-day operations of a service delivery branch or residential care home, are responsible persons of the registered provider.⁶ That shapes who you hire and what you must tell the Commission about them.

The Aged Care Award 2010 has no manager classification. Its highest classifications are general level 7, which may supervise the work of others, and the direct care team leader at level 6.¹¹ So that award sets no minimum for a facility or service manager.

Where the manager is a registered nurse appointed as director of nursing by an aged care employer covered by the Nurses Award 2020, registered nurse level 5 applies: at least $2,711.30 a week, or $71.35 an hour, from 1 August 2026. The award says a level 5 nurse may also be known as a director of nursing. Nurses who were at level 5, grade 6 on or before 28 February 2025 have their own translated rate.⁴

The closest earnings figure is for Health and Welfare Services Managers (ANZSCO 1342), the wider group: a national median of $2,720 a week, or $73 an hour, for full-time employees in May 2025.¹ We talk with you about the salary, housing and relocation support that will compete for a manager in your location.

Start with the service: a residential home and its bed numbers, a home care service and the district it covers, or a group of services. Then say whether the role must be a registered nurse, whether it is the responsible person for nursing services or for day-to-day operations, and who it reports to.

Then the practical details: the budget and staff numbers, the quality standards and any current compliance focus, the systems you use, and on-call or after-hours duties. Tell us too what support the manager will have from a regional or head office team.

We start with managers already in your region and then widen the search to people planning a move, including experienced managers from larger cities.

Tell us early about housing, relocation costs, a vehicle if the role covers several sites, and any help for a partner or family. We raise them in the first conversation.

If the right person needs a visa or sponsorship, our sister business Australian Immigration Agency can advise.

Register with Hire Australia and tell us the services you have managed, your qualifications and registration, and where you would like to work. We will talk with you about roles that fit.