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Disability support worker recruitment for regional employers

Hire Australia is a regional recruitment specialist. We help NDIS providers, supported independent living services, community programs and in-home support providers across regional Australia hire disability support workers, senior support workers and team leaders. Screening, the roster and the needs of the people you support are part of the search from the first conversation.

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Illustrative image: a disability support worker walks beside a young adult using a wheelchair along a tree-lined regional main street.

Disability support hiring at a glance

Aged or Disabled Carer is rated in national shortage, and much of the advertising for carers happens outside the major cities.

national rating for Aged or Disabled Carer in 2026
Shortage
ANZSCO 2022 rating; Disabilities Services Officer is not rated in shortage. There is no separate rating for disability support workers.1
of aged and disabled carer job ads were for regional areas
44%
1,571 of 3,548 ads a month with a location, three-month average to September 2026. The group includes aged care workers.2
award minimum a week for a worker with a relevant certificate
$1,376.49
From 1 July 2026, level 2, pay point 1.4
of aged and disabled carers work full-time hours
40%
Against 69% across all occupations, so hours and rosters shape the hire.3

What does a disability support worker do, and what qualification do they hold?

Disability support workers help people with disability with personal care, daily living, mobility and getting out into the community.3 The work ranges from shared homes with sleepover and active night shifts to one-to-one support in someone's own home and community programs.

Relevant disability support qualifications include CHC43121 Certificate IV in Disability Support, which replaced CHC43115,5 and CHC33021 Certificate III in Individual Support.6 Experienced workers may hold an earlier relevant qualification. We recruit experienced support workers, senior support workers and team leaders as well as people new to the sector.

Which screening clearances does a disability support worker need in each state?

A worker in a risk-assessed role with a registered NDIS provider needs an NDIS worker screening check. It is a national check, recognised across Australia and valid for up to 5 years, but each state and territory runs its own screening unit.7 Work with children adds a separate state check. In Queensland, for example, a worker supporting a child with disability needs a blue card as well as an NDIS clearance.8

The unit that issues the NDIS worker screening check, and the check for work with children, in each state and territory, as published by each issuer on 1 November 2026.

State or territoryNDIS worker screening clearance: issuerCheck for work with children, and issuer
All states and territoriesOne national check for risk-assessed roles, valid for up to 5 years7Set by each state, as below
New South WalesOffice of the Children's Guardian (NDIS Worker Check)9Working with Children Check, Office of the Children's Guardian10
VictoriaVictorian Government11Working with Children Check, Victorian Government12
QueenslandQueensland Government (a blue card is also needed for work with children with disability)8Blue card (working with children check), Queensland Government13
South AustraliaDepartment of Human Services14Working with Children Check, Department of Human Services15
Western AustraliaDepartment of Communities16Working with Children Check, Department of Communities17
TasmaniaDepartment of Justice, as part of registration to work with vulnerable people18Registration to work with vulnerable people, Department of Justice18
Northern TerritorySAFE NT, NT Police, Fire and Emergency Services19Working with Children Clearance (Ochre Card), Northern Territory Government20
Australian Capital TerritoryAccess Canberra, in addition to Working with Vulnerable People registration21Working with Vulnerable People registration, Access Canberra22

What does a disability support worker earn?

Where the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010 covers the role, it sets the minimum. Under its social and community services stream, a worker with a relevant certificate starts at level 2, pay point 1: $1,376.49 a week, or $36.22 an hour, from 1 July 2026. A worker with a Certificate IV starts at pay point 2, $1,419.79 a week.4

In-home support can fall under the award's home care stream instead, where a disability home care employee at level 3, pay point 1 earns at least $1,119.10 a week from 1 July 2026.4 The classification depends on the work and the setting, so confirm it against the award before you set the rate.4

There is no published median for disability support workers alone. The wider aged and disabled carers group, which includes them, had median full-time earnings of $1,761 a week in May 2025, nationally.3 We talk with you about the rate, shift penalties and allowances that will compete for your location.

Where are disability support workers in demand?

No job ad series covers disability support workers alone; they sit in the aged and disabled carers group with aged care workers. New South Wales carries the most ads in that group, and South Australia and Victoria rose in the year to September 2026.23 44% of the group's ads were for regional areas, against 29% of all ads.2

Online job ads for aged and disabled carers by state (three-month average to September 2026 and a year earlier) and each state's share of aged and disabled carers employed (February 2026).3,23

State or territoryJob ads a monthA year earlierShare of the national workforce
New South Wales1,186231,23227.4%3
Queensland92795223%
Victoria83279924.5%
South Australia3112749.8%
Western Australia21625110.1%
Tasmania68673%
Australian Capital Territory47541.2%
Northern Territory35391%

What to tell us about your disability support role

Tell us the service first: supported independent living, in-home support, community access or a day program. Then the level, from a support worker to a senior worker or team leader who rosters and supervises others.

The practical details shape who will apply: sleepovers and active nights, the support needs of the people involved, including behaviour support plans, personal care, driving with a licence and vehicle, part-time or full-time hours, and travel between homes.

How we help you hire disability support workers

You make the hiring decision and employ the person directly. We handle the search and the organising in between.

  1. Step 1

    Understand the role

    We talk with you about the service, the people you support, the roster, the screening the role needs and where the worker will be based.

  2. Step 2

    Source and screen

    We talk with support workers about the services they have worked in, their qualification and screening, and the shifts they can work. We build the screening into the brief; you complete the formal screening checks as the employer.

  3. Step 3

    Introduce suitable people

    We introduce the candidates who best match your brief, so you decide who to interview.

  4. Step 4

    Coordinate the hire

    We coordinate the next steps and keep both sides informed through interviews and the offer. You employ the person directly.

Rosters, travel and regional postings

Only 40% of aged and disabled carers work full-time hours,3 so tell us the hours you can offer and how stable the roster is. We start with workers who already live in or have ties to your region, then widen the search.

Tell us early about minimum hours, travel allowances, a vehicle and any help with housing. We raise them in the first conversation.

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

Looking for a disability support role in the regions?

Register with Hire Australia and tell us your qualification, your screening, the services you have worked in and where you would like to work. We will talk with you about roles that fit.

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Talk to us about your next disability support worker hire

Tell us the role, the service, the location and the roster.

Employers pay nothing until the successful candidate has started and stayed two months. Candidates never pay for recruitment.

Discuss a roleRegister

A FEW PRACTICAL QUESTIONS

Good to know.

Who issues the NDIS worker screening check?

Each state and territory runs its own worker screening unit, such as the Office of the Children's Guardian in New South Wales or SAFE NT in the Northern Territory.9,19 The check itself is national, recognised across Australia and valid for up to 5 years.7 Hire Australia builds the checks into the brief and asks candidates which they hold; you complete the formal screening.

What is the award rate for a disability support worker in 2026?

Under the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010, a worker with a relevant certificate earns at least $1,376.49 a week from 1 July 2026, and $1,419.79 with a Certificate IV.4 In-home disability support may fall under the home care stream instead, from $1,119.10 a week at level 3.4 Hire Australia talks through your pay range and the classification with you early.

Are disability support workers in shortage?

The 2026 list rates ANZSCO occupations, and has no separate rating for disability support workers. Aged or Disabled Carer is rated in shortage nationally; Disabilities Services Officer is not.1 In the three months to September 2026, 44% of job ads for the wider aged and disabled carers group were for regional areas.2 Hire Australia plans regional disability searches around your roster and start date.

Does Hire Australia recruit experienced disability support workers?

Yes. Hire Australia recruits experienced disability support workers, senior support workers and team leaders, as well as people starting in the sector. Tell us the service, the support needs of the people involved and the roster, and we search for people whose experience matches, including sleepovers, behaviour support or complex personal care.

What does it cost to use Hire Australia?

Employers pay nothing until the successful candidate has started and stayed two months. Candidates never pay for recruitment. You employ the person directly, and we agree the terms with you in writing before the search begins. The fee terms are the same whether Hire Australia recruits a support worker or a team leader.

Does Hire Australia supply labour hire or temporary staff?

No. Hire Australia recruits people you employ directly, in permanent roles. We don’t supply labour hire or temps, and candidates never work on our payroll. We search for and screen people for your vacancy, introduce the ones who fit, and you make the offer and employ them. That keeps the working relationship between you and your new employee from day one.

Sources (23)

  1. Jobs and Skills Australia, 2026 Occupation Shortage List (6-digit ANZSCO 2022 and OSCA 2024 sheets). National ratings from the ANZSCO 2022 sheet, matching the ANZSCO job-ad and earnings groups beside them. In shortage means rated S (shortage) or R (regional shortage). Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  2. Jobs and Skills Australia, Internet Vacancy Index, ANZSCO 4-digit occupations by JSA remoteness. Data: Three-month average to September 2026; counts online job ads, not jobs filled. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  3. Jobs and Skills Australia, Occupation data download, ANZSCO occupation profiles. Data: February 2026. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  4. Fair Work Commission, Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010 [MA000100], consolidated award text; the Fair Work Ombudsman pay guide restating these rates is effective 1 September 2026. Data: Rates from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026, clauses 15 and 17. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  5. training.gov.au, CHC43121 Certificate IV in Disability Support (current; replaced CHC43115). Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  6. training.gov.au, CHC33021 Certificate III in Individual Support (current; replaced CHC33015). Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  7. NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, Worker screening (NDIS worker screening check). Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  8. Queensland Government, Blue cards for disability work. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  9. Office of the Children's Guardian (NSW), NDIS Worker Check. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  10. Office of the Children's Guardian (NSW), Working with Children Check. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  11. Victorian Government, NDIS Worker Screening Check. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  12. Victorian Government, Working with Children Check. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  13. Queensland Government, Blue cards for working with children. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  14. Government of South Australia, Department of Human Services, NDIS Worker Checks. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  15. Government of South Australia, Department of Human Services, Working with Children Checks. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  16. Government of Western Australia, Department of Communities, NDIS Worker Screening Check. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  17. Government of Western Australia, Department of Communities, Working with Children Check. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  18. Department of Justice (Tasmania), Registration to work with vulnerable people (includes the NDIS Worker Screening Check). Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  19. NT Police, Fire and Emergency Services (SAFE NT), NDIS Worker Screening Check. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  20. Northern Territory Government, Working with Children Clearance: apply and renew. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  21. Access Canberra, WWVP and the NDIS. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  22. Access Canberra, Working with Vulnerable People. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑
  23. Jobs and Skills Australia, Internet Vacancy Index, ANZSCO 4-digit occupations by state and territory. Data: Three-month average to September 2026; counts online job ads, not jobs filled. Accessed 1 November 2026. Back to text ↑