Contemporary Disability Employment Policy in Australia: How can It Best Support Transitions from Welfare to Work‪?‬

Abstract Since the re-election of the Howard government in 2004, welfare reform has been back on the government's agenda as a high priority. Although the notion of 'workforce participation' has long driven government's employment policy, the participation rate of people with a disability was of particular interest in the government's 2005 reforms. The transfer of Open Employment Services for people with a disability from the Department of Family and Community Services (FACS) to the 'Workforce Participation' portfolio within the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) was among the first of the Prime Minister's announcements following his re-election. This move signals significant changes for the disability employment sector and for disability employment policy. Against the background of disability employment policy in Australia, this article examines current government policy initiatives and their possible implications and the interface between disability employment services and the Job Network. It concludes on the possible application of Transitional Labour Market policies as a means of increasing workforce participation rates for jobseekers with a disability and what this would require from government policy.