What is Workforce Australia?

Workforce Australia is the new program consolidating the government’s existing employment and skills brands under one banner. It's made up of two streams:

1. Face-to-face service with tailored support

2. An independent access online portal

The transition took place on the 4th of July 2022. Most new and already registered job seekers are continuing to work with government authorised employment agencies, such as Employment Plus. At some point in the coming months, jobactive participants who are ‘job-ready’ and actively looking for employment may be moved to the online portal to manage their job searches independently without an employment agency.

LEARN MORE ABOUT WORKFORCE AUSTRALIA

What does this mean for you?

If you are already registered with us as your employment services provider, you will continue to remain registered with us, unless you request to change to a different provider.

If you’re registered with a different provider, or if that provider is no longer offering services in your area, and you wish to change to Employment Plus or another provider, you can ask Centrelink to help you transfer. To learn more about getting started, registering with Employment Plus, or requesting a transfer via Centrelink, please see THIS PAGE of our website.

What’s changing?

Under the new Workforce program, the mutual obligations for job seekers will transition to what's being called the Points Based Activation System (PBAS). Under this system, instead of submitting 20 job applications a month, you’ll need to accumulate 100 points a month, in order to continue receiving your unemployment benefit payments.

In addition to completing job applications, points can be earned through undertaking training courses, Work for the Dole, volunteering and more. For example, attending a job interview or starting a new job will be worth 20 points, and completing a job application is worth 5 points. A full list of points values has been created here: Points Based Activation System. Points targets may be reduced based on individual personal circumstances, and extra points can be carried over into the next month.

Work for the dole will also become compulsory after 6 months for job seekers working with an employment services provider, rather than the current 12, though you’ll only need to do this for 2 months instead of 6.

How we can help

Throughout the transition to Workforce Australia, we will do our best to keep you updated with news and information as soon as we receive it, via our email newsletters and direct emails to our registered participants.

All Employment Plus registered participants will continue to receive our support with:

  • career guidance, mentoring and vocational training
  • job placements and post-placement support
  • support to help you get the tools and skills you need to find and keep a job, such as training, work-related licencing, relocation assistance and other work-related goods and services
  • employment programs that recognise skills and micro-credentials alongside gaining work-like experiences
  • support to access the digital platform to manage your mutual obligations and look for jobs


Booking an appointment

Existing Employment Plus job seekers

All existing job seekers registered with Employment Plus will have an appointment in the coming weeks to review their job plan and ensure your job search is appropriate to you and your individual needs. If you haven't already been contacted to schedule an appointment for this, please contact us at your earliest convenience on 136 123.

New Employment Plus job seekers

If you are newly registering with Employment Plus as part of the Workforce Australia rollout, you won't be able to make an appointment with us until after the 4th of July 2022. After this time please call 136 123 to make an appointment, if this has not already been set up for you by Centrelink.

At Employment Plus we know it’s never just a job. We look forward to helping you find meaningful and fulfilling long-term employment.

To find out more about Workforce Australia, visit the new employment services webpage and make sure you are on our mailing list by signing up on the link below.