Federal Government recognised for disability employment policies

The Federal Government has been internationally recognised for its efforts to remove barriers to employment for people with disability.

The Hon Jane Prentice, Assistant Minister for Social Services and Disability Services, announced the Federal Government’s JobAccess Service received an award at the annual Zero Project Conference held at the UN in Vienna last week.

“I am proud our Australian Government Service has been recognised internationally as best practice and wish to congratulate JobAccess for making real and meaningful improvements to the lives of Australians with disability,” she said.

JobAccess received an award in the Innovative Policies advancing Employment of Persons with Disabilities category.

Mrs Prentice said this award was wonderful acknowledgment of the work of JobAccess as well as their efforts to revamp services.

“In July 2016 JobAccess combined four previously separate services into one national hub to ensure services meet the needs of their users,” she said.

“This allowed for improved usability and accessibility, supporting JobAccess’s long term objective to increase the number of people with disability in paid employment.”

The Zero Project is an initiative of the Essl Foundation (an Austrian charitable foundation) which supports the implementation of the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and focuses on the rights of persons with disabilities globally.

The Zero Project hosts an annual conference where organisations responsible for the development of innovative policies and practices present their solutions to their peers involved in the world of disability, including stakeholders, government ministers and other key influencers.