A long-overdue investigation aims to tackle underpayment and confusion in a sector stretched thin.

The disability support sector has become a casualty of its own complexity.

Workers are underpaid. Employers are overwhelmed. And not even the Fair Work Ombudsman pretends to fully understand the Award meant to protect them all.

Now someone’s finally paying attention, but it won’t be a quick fix.

In what it calls a “multi-year inquiry”, the Fair Work Ombudsman has begun investigating the employment practices of disability support providers across the country. It’s not a targeted crackdown. But it is a recognition of widespread problems across a sector defined by high demand, high staff turnover, and low margins.

“We’ve seen large-scale non-compliance,” the Ombudsman’s statement concedes. “People aren’t being paid properly.”

The problem isn’t just rogue employers. It’s a perfect storm: rapid sector growth, unstable funding, and a byzantine industrial award that few understand and fewer can implement. The Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award (SCHADS) has become a byword for ambiguity. But arcane awards are just the sort of thing that excites former Uniob official Anna Booth.

Now Ombudsman, she says the inquiry will begin by listening. Employers, employees, contractors and participants will all be asked about their experience. But enforcement will follow. And the implications will be serious.

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Complexity and confusion: the price of system failure

This inquiry didn’t come out of nowhere.

The NDIS turned disability support into a multibillion-dollar marketplace. Providers face shifting regulations, delayed payments, and uncertain futures. Workers, often young, female, casual and undertrained, are left navigating uncertain rosters and inconsistent pay.

Add the rise of gig platforms, thin margins, and a lack of central oversight, and the result is chaos.

The Ombudsman says it wants to identify patterns, barriers to compliance, and the most “concerning behaviours”. It’s already flagged the possibility of targeting “the most serious breaches” for investigation.

What you can do

The inquiry is now open. Anyone involved in the sector—employers, workers, participants, or representatives—can share their experience by emailing [email protected].

This matters. If you’ve struggled to understand the Award, missed a shift because of unclear rostering, or been paid late—or not at all—now’s your chance to help change that.

Public sessions will be held in metro, regional and rural areas in the coming months. In the meantime, workers and employers are all being encouraged to speak up.