New program helps more than 1000 South Australians secure jobs

More than 1000 South Australian job seekers are now in a job through an Australian Government program designed to break the cycle of unemployment.

Minister for Employment Participation, Kate Ellis said the Australian Government is helping more South Australians secure jobs through the new Wage Connect initiative which began in January last year. 

“Wage Connect is about giving employers the incentive to give a long-term unemployed person a chance, when they might not otherwise have had one,” Ms Ellis said.

“Among those South Australians who have found work through Wage Connect, more than 500 are people who identify as having a disability and 140 are over 50 years of age.”

Minister Ellis said Wage Connect continues to play an important role in driving down the proportion of unemployed people who are classified as long-term unemployed in South Australia.

“It’s a game-changer as far as long term unemployment goes, and a chance for many people to have a new start at life.”

Wage Connect provides a wage subsidy of around $5,900 over 26 weeks to eligible businesses which employ people who have been receiving income support for two years, and have had no or minimal work experience in that time.

The initiative helps businesses take on and train people who have been unemployed for some time, helping offset wage and training costs for the first six months of employment.

“People who have been out of work for a while with no recent work experience can find it difficult to get a job and Wage Connect is successfully breaking down these barriers.”

Interested employers who would like to learn more about Wage Connect can visit http://deewr.gov.au/wage-connect or contact a local employment services provider on 13 17 15.