Social Security (Specified Programs) Instrument 2024

Item

Name of Program

Purpose

Australian Apprenticeship Support Services

To support the Commonwealth's employment and vocational education and training policies by providing support to apprentices, especially to diverse apprentice cohorts such as women in male dominated trades, apprentices with disability, remote and First Nations apprentices, and in relation to connecting with, undertaking, and completing apprenticeships.

2.        

Supporting women in male dominated apprenticeships

To provide funding for organisations with expertise in supporting women in the workplace, to support women in historically male dominated trade apprenticeships.

3.        

Australian Apprenticeships Incentives Program

To provide payments to apprentices, employers of apprentices and registered training organisations, to encourage and support the commencement and completion of apprenticeships.

4.        

Industry Specialist Mentoring for Australian Apprentices

To provide support for industry specialist mentoring services for apprentices and trainees:

(a)     to improve retention and completion rates; and 

(b)    to support the supply of skilled workers in industries undergoing structural change. 

This objective also has the effect it would have if it were limited to providing support for activities that are the provision of, or incidental to the provision of, benefits to students (within the meaning of paragraph 51(xxiiiA) of the Constitution). 

5.        

Coronavirus Economic Response – Assistance for Apprentices and Trainees

To provide payments to eligible employers of apprentices and trainees, Australian Apprenticeship Support Network providers and Group Training Organisations to:

(a)     encourage and support. apprenticeships and traineeships; and

(b)    assist businesses, apprentices and trainees who may suffer adverse economic effects of the Coronavirus known as COVID-19.

6.        

Australian Apprenticeships Incentive System

To provide funding, including for apprentices and employers of apprentices, to encourage and support the commencement and completion of apprenticeships.

7.        

Skills Checkpoint for Older Workers Program

To provide funding for career guidance and training for older workers to help them remain in the workforce.

8.        

Foundation Skills for Your Future Program

To provide funding for the development and delivery of skills training in language, literacy, numeracy and digital literacy to facilitate the participation of training recipients in further training or the workforce.

9.        

Industry Training Hubs

To increase participation of young people (including school students) in vocational education and training, and to create better employment pathways for those young people, by supporting the establishment of vocational education and training hubs, including by providing funding for the following:

(a)     costs associated with establishing and operating the hubs;

(b)    engaging persons to build relationships between industry, schools and other educational institutions;

(c)     developing and delivering training and other support for those young people to assist them to gain skills relevant to the trades sector;

(d)    developing and delivering training to persons to enable them to better assist those young people.

10.     

Commonwealth Scholarship Program for Young Australians

To provide scholarships for vocational education and training for students from areas of social and economic disadvantage.

11.     

Reading Writing Hotline

To provide funding for the provision to adults, online or by telephone, of information about language, literacy and numeracy courses.

12.     

Adult Learners’ Week

To provide funding for activities undertaken as part of the annual United Nations Week of Adult Learning referred to in the Hamburg Declaration on Adult Learning, as existing at the commencement of this item.

13.     

National Training System Commonwealth Own Purpose Expenditure Program

To provide essential governance and infrastructure for the operation of the national training system, including through the provision of funding for:

(a)     vocational education and training (VET) data collection, analysis and research; and

(b)    the development and evaluation of VET policy; and

(c)     the development of VET standards, frameworks and supporting materials; and

(d)    the collection and publication of VET information; and

(e)     the development, hosting and maintenance of infrastructure (including telecommunication systems) to support the VET sector.

14.     

Digital Skills Cadetship Trial

The Trial will test different models for increasing the number of Australians with high level digital skills through cadetship projects. The Trial aims to:

(a)     support participants to obtain the skills (and qualifications) required to move into employment in digital roles, and/or into further education and training; 

(b)    support employers to meet their skills needs; and

(c)     generate insights into innovative approaches to developing digital skills and capabilities.

15.     

VET System Improvements

To support improvements to the vocational education and training (VET) system, including by:

(a)     developing, maintaining and promoting nationally endorsed training packages; and

(b)    developing, maintaining and promoting resources and products for use by VET providers; and

(c)     assisting VET providers with training delivery and assessment; and

(d)    engaging with industry, schools, VET providers and others to support and promote career pathways and outcomes; and

(e)     trialling new arrangements for the delivery of training products; and

(f)     undertaking skills forecasting and responding to emerging skills and workforce challenges.

16.     

Skills Assessment Pilots

To increase the number of skilled migrants who can contribute to the Australian workforce at an appropriate skill level, by funding the development, promotion and provision of:

(a)     skills assessments; and

(b)    employability assessments; and

(c)     skills training;

for aliens (within the meaning of paragraph 51(xix) of the Constitution).

17.     

WorldSkills Australia

To provide financial assistance to WorldSkills Australia to promote skill-based career pathways by:

(a)     engaging in measures to meet Australia's obligations under the following:

(i)         the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;

(ii)       the International Labour Organization's Convention concerning Employment Policy;

(iii)     the International Labour Organization's Convention concerning Vocational Guidance and Vocational Training in the Development of Human Resources; and

(b)    promoting and conducting a national skills competition, to the extent that these activities are peculiarly adapted to the government of a nation and cannot otherwise be carried on for the benefit of the nation; and

(c)     conducting research for the purpose of informing the Commonwealth.

18.     

Vocational Education and Training Information Strategy

To provide funding to raise awareness about vocational education and training programs in Australia.

19.     

National Careers Institute Grants Program (Your Career)

To develop, and provide online, information to support individuals and organisations to access, understand and compare: 

(a)     education, training, skills development and other learning options;

(b)    occupational choices;  

(c)     training courses and training providers;  

(d)    employment opportunities;  

(e)     advice about finding, applying for and gaining employment;

(f)     labour market trends; and 

(g)     other careers information in the possession of the Commonwealth. 

20.     

School Leaver Program

To provide information, advice and referral services (including through telephone and online services) to support school leavers to:

(a)     make informed decisions about their career; or

(b)    transition to further learning or employment.

21.     

Australian Training Awards

To support a national awards scheme recognising achievement by individuals (including students) and organisations in the vocational education and training sector by funding:

(a)     monetary prizes forming part of awards; and

(b)    expenses associated with the awards judging process, presenting awards to recipients and promoting the awards program.

22.     

National Careers Institute – Digital Platform (Your Career)

To develop, and provide online, information to support individuals and organisations to access, understand and compare: 

(a)     education, training, skills development and other learning options; 

(b)    occupational choices;

(c)     training courses and training providers;

(d)    employment opportunities;

(e)     advice about finding, applying for and gaining employment;

(f)     labour market trends; and 

(g)    other careers information in the possession of the Commonwealth. 

23.     

School Leavers Information Service

To do the following:

(a)     provide information advice and referral services to support young people to make informed decisions about their career or to transition to further learning or paid work;

(b)    trial supporting job seekers aged 25 years and over through telephone and online services to make informed decisions about their career or to transition to further learning or paid work.

24.     

Work for the Dole

To support the Workforce Australia program by providing work-like experiences to help job seekers gain skills and confidence to support them into paid work.

25.     

Labour Market Support Stream

To provide additional services to retrenched workers and job seekers to help them to find and keep paid work, as measures:

(a)     providing unemployment benefits; or

(b)    promoting full, productive and freely chosen employment; or

(c)     providing a free public employment service; or

(d)    providing technical and vocational guidance and training programmes to enable persons to realise the right to work; or

(e)     providing services in a Territory.

26.     

Harvest Trail Services and Harvest Trail Information Service

To provide support to connect workers with employers in harvest areas across Australia by providing information on and placing eligible people (Australian workers, permanent residents and eligible visa holders) into seasonal horticultural work.

27.     

ParentsNext

A pre-employment program that aims to help eligible parents to plan and prepare for employment by the time their youngest child reaches school age by:

(a)     Assisting them to identify their education and employment goals

(b)    Linking them to activities to help them achieve these goals

(c)     Providing financial assistance to help achieve these goals.

28.     

Launch Into Work

To provide support to eligible individuals through projects that:

(a)     improve their skills, experience and confidence; and

(b)    help them to find and keep paid work.

29.     

Jobs and Education Data Infrastructure

To provide funding to support:

(a)     the collection, analysis and sharing of information to inform the development of education, training and employment policy; and

(b)    the online delivery of education, training and employment information and services, including the development of online tools for this purpose.

30.     

Local Jobs Program

To support the delivery of a place-based initiative that supports inclusive labour market functioning through information sharing, regional cooperation and collaboration. and coordination or facilitation of access to services.

This includes:

(a)     deploying employment facilitators into employment regions; and

(b)    Delivering Local Jobs and Skills Taskforces; and

(c)     Funding projects. 

31.     

Workforce Australia

To help job seekers find and keep paid work by:

(a)     providing employment and related assessments and services which assist Australians to find and keep paid work; and

(b)    providing activities, including in not-for-profit and government organisations, to help prepare Australians for the work environment; and

(c)     engaging a panel of Workforce Specialists to identify and deliver projects that provide Australians with opportunities in areas of workforce demand; and

(d)    providing immediate access to job seeker services and supports for any retrenched workers and their partners.

32.     

Workforce Australia – Self-Employment Assistance

Self-Employment Assistance helps Participants become financially independent by creating their own small business or by helping Eligible Business Owners to adjust their businesses.

33.     

Time to Work Employment Services

To assist adult, sentenced Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners to prepare for employment upon their release and reintegrate back into the community.

34.     

Norfolk Island Employment Services

To help Australians find and keep paid work by:

(a)     providing employment and related assessments and services which assist Australians to find and keep paid work; and

(b)    providing activities, including in not-for-profit and government organisations, to help prepare Australians for the work environment.

35.     

Broome Employment Services

To help Australians find and keep paid work by:

(a)     providing employment and related assessments and services which assist Australians to find and keep paid work; and

(b)    providing activities, including in not-for-profit and government organisations, to help prepare Australians for the work environment.

36.     

Yarrabah Employment Services

To provide the Community of Yarrabah (an Indigenous community) high quality and culturally appropriate employment services and to:

(a)     deliver training and employment outcomes for job seekers and employers;

(b)    deliver personalise support to job seekers who are residing or have a residential address in Yarrabah;

(c)     increase investment in disadvantaged job seekers, the majority of whom are Indigenous, to reduce their risk of becoming long-term or very long-term unemployed, and

(d)    deliver simple, efficient, trusted and connected recruitment services that employers actively use to fill vacancies and match the most appropriate job seeker for the role.

37.     

Y Careers

To provide grant funding to an organisation to set up an agency to support young people and employers in the care economy. This includes providing funding for:

(a)     the set-up of the agency; and

(b)    three pilot sites, which will support young people to undertake training and paid placements in the care sector; and

(c)     evaluation.

38.     

Workforce Australia – Transition to Work

To provide assistance to young people who have disengaged from education and are at risk of becoming long-term unemployed by providing intensive early intervention to prepare them for work, as a measure:

(a)     providing unemployment benefits; or

(b)    promoting full, productive and freely chosen employment; or

(c)     providing a free public employment service; or

(d)    providing technical and vocational guidance and training programmes to enable persons to realise the right to work; or

(e)     providing services in a Territory.

39.     

National Digital Apprenticeships Portal

To provide accessible, personalised yet consistent, comprehensive and up-to-date information to students, career advisors, influencers, parents and employers about apprenticeships pathways including highlighting those that deliver the best outcomes for students, employers and the economy.   

To assist current and prospective employers of apprentices to find out more about their eligibility for financial and other support, bringing together fragmented information from across multiple Commonwealth, state and industry websites.

40.     

Industry Workforce Training Program

To support the national training system to deliver skills required for Australian industry and the economy. 

41.     

Skills for Education and Employment Program

To enable job seekers to secure sustainable employment or participate in further education, by providing access to language, literacy, numeracy and digital skills training, as benefits to students within the meaning of paragraph 51(xxiiA) of the Constitution.

42.     

MySkills Website

To support the operation and hosting of the My Skills website (now integrated with the Your Career website), Australia’s national directory of training, allowing consumers to search and compare VET courses and training providers to make informed decisions about training courses and providers.

43.     

Integrated Information Service for Australian Apprenticeships

To provide funding to an entity:

(a)     to provide information about apprenticeships and traineeships, including through a website, social media, email, mobile phone applications and an 1800 free-call service; and

(b)    to explain how to use those services to access information about apprenticeships and traineeships; and

(c)     to compile and publish statistics on apprenticeships and traineeships.

44.     

Skilling the Clean Energy Workforce Program

To support the development of the clean energy workforce by: 

(a)     providing payments, enhanced communications and additional support to apprentices to encourage apprentices to choose new energy careers, improve retention rates and deliver more successful completions; and

(b)    evaluating the impact of the support provided by (a); and

(c)     establishing a new mentoring program; and

(d)    developing fit-for-purpose training pathways to support the delivery of  clean energy training; and 

(e)     commissioning Jobs and Skills Australia to undertake a capacity study on the workforce needs of the clean energy industry.

45.     

Relocation Assistance to Take Up a Job 

To provide payments of financial assistance to unemployed persons and other eligible individuals to assist them to relocate to other areas of Australia to take up paid work, including to address labour shortages.

46.     

Employability Skills Training

To provide intensive pre-employment training to eligible job seekers by helping them to develop the skills that employers are looking for, build job search, workplace and industry specific skills and explore career options in in-demand industries in their local labour market.

47.     

Career Transition Assistance 

To provide tailored assistance to individuals aged 45 years and over participating in Workforce Australia and other eligible individuals with a myGov account to build their confidence, identify their existing skills and how to transfer their skills to a new job or industry and improve digital literacy to become more competitive in the local labour market.

48.     

Aboriginal Community Controlled Trainer and Assessor Workforce Program

To provide funding to increase and support the First Nations trainer and assessor workforces in the Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation training sector.