Attraction and retention issues
Findings from the Department of Employment’s Survey of Employers Who have Recently Advertised
indicate community services employers are attracting large numbers of suitable applicants. This
can be attributed to the increases in new supply, particularly through higher training numbers.
Despite this, recruitment difficulty was most common for higher-skilled occupations (such as early
childhood teachers and registered nurses), and skills shortages existed for workers with significant
years of experience rather than entry level workers. Employers have suggested that low levels of
staff retention limit supply, as well as qualification requirements (for example, jobs in aged care or
disability services often require a Certificate III or higher qualification) (DoE 2014b).
The Australian Community Sector Survey is the annual survey of community services across
Australia conducted by the Australian Council of Social Service. Results of the 2013 survey showed
that attraction and retention of staff (reported by 16% of service providers) was the single biggest
operational challenge facing not-for-profit community services, followed by the implementation of
the 2012 Equal Remuneration Order for community sector workers (ACOSS 2013). This order sets pay
rises of between 19% and 41% to be phased in via 9 annual instalments from 1 December 2012 to
1 December 2020 (FWC 2012).
The child protection services sector is another example of an area experiencing staffing supply
issues, with most jurisdictions reporting insufficient numbers of social work, psychology and
human service graduates available or willing to work in child protection to meet the demand.
The sector faces particular difficulties in recruiting men to child protection work as the proportion
of men studying in disciplines from which child protection services recruit remains low
(ICPS 2012). Recruitment in regional and remote areas is also a major challenge for the child
protection workforce, as is recruiting staff from an Indigenous or a culturally diverse background,
and those with a degree or higher qualification (ICPS 2012).
The disability sector has long experienced workforce recruitment and retention issues (PC 2011b).
The establishment of the National Disability Insurance Scheme may further increase the demand for
workers in this sector.
Aged care service providers highlighted three main causes of skill shortages when surveyed in 2012:
lack of specialist knowledge, slow recruitment, and geographical location. Each of these causes was
nominated by one-third of the residential facilities and community outlets reporting skill shortages.
Of the remaining causes, low wages were singled out by 15% of service providers (King et al. 2013:163).
High turnover rates
Compounding these supply issues are high turnover rates in a number of community services
workforces, with many employers replacing around one-quarter of workers every year
(Martin et al. 2012:4). Nationally, about one-quarter of workers in child protection (27%) and disability
(24%) services workforces had been in their jobs for 1 year or less in 2009 (Martin & Healy 2010).
Furthermore, a study in 2011 of the statutory child protection workforce in 5 of 8 jurisdictions found
that between 6% and 20% of workers had lengths of service of less than 1 year in child protection
(ICPS 2012). This leads to a substantial recruitment, induction and training burden for employers, and
increases caseloads for the existing workers (Martin & Healy 2010).