ACTU response to Request for comment: Possible public inquiry on employment and disability issues

ACTU

PRESIDENT Sharan Burrow

SECRETARY Greg Combet

393





3000 Australia

TELEPHONE

ISD (613) 9663 5266

STD (03) 9663 5266

FACSIMILE

(03) 9663 4051

(031 9663 8220

actu.asn.au

14 September 2004

Disability Rights Unit

Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission

GPO



NSW 2001

Dear Disability Rights Unit

RE: ACTU response to Request for comment: Possible public inquiry on
employment and disability issues

The ACTU would welcome a public inquiry on employment
and disability issues.

In this regard, the ACTU makes the following brief
comments:

The ACTU believes that an inquiry, as a vehicle for
public education, would assist to promote employment opportunities for people
with disability. Additionally the inquiry would provide the opportunity to
consider ways to facilitate employment participation and could therefore
provide a means to report and make recommendations to Government.

In particular, the ACTU believes that the issue of
participation costs facing people with disability and the means of addressing
these costs should be considered. We see this as associated to the issue of
personal support and assistance -  the effectiveness
of arrangements for personal support in relation to employment participation.

Among other issues the ACTU would wish to comment upon
are the Supported Wage System and the Relationship between Supported and Open Employment.

The ACTU is a key stakeholder in the Supported Wage
System (SWS). We believe the SWS is a successful and
positive measure, facilitating the employment of people with disability.
According to the Department of Family and Community Services Annual Report
2002-2003, 3010 people were employed under the SWS in the financial year
2002-03. We believe that, for people who are eligible to participate in the
SWS, the system provides a valid, reliable and transparent wage assessment
method. However we consider that access to the SWS needs to be better promoted.

The ACTU believes that all workers with disability
employed in Supported Employment should also have their wages assessed in
accordance with a valid, reliable and transparent wage assessment tool.
Standard 9 of the Quality Assurance System for Business Services requires
Business Services to pay award based wages. To assist Business Services comply
with this Standard, the Department of Family and Community Services has
developed the Business Services Wage Assessment Tool (BSWAT). The ACTU believes
that this tool or an equivalent tool should be used by all Business Services to
assess employee wages. We believe this is an integral part of facilitating a
transition path between supported and mainstream or open employment because the
Business Services Wage Assessment Tool links to training.

The ACTU would be happy to expand on these and other issues if a Public Inquiry
is formed.

We trust these comments are of assistance.

Yours sincerely

SHARAN BURROW

President