Why Young People Should Do Support Work

Many people with a disability require assistance to live an ordinary life, so they can live like everyone else. As society is increasingly invested in creating greater equality for marginalised groups, more people require more support to exist in the world. Support work includes but is not limited to in-home assistance such as personal care, cooking, cleaning, and transport. Other assistance includes social support, community integration, and work activities.

There is currently a shortage of disability support workers due to many factors. The main reason is that the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has rapidly expanded since it was established in 2013. Before the NDIS, there were approximately 220,000 people receiving disability support under a state and territory system. As of 2022, there are over 500,000 people covered by the NDIS, and that number is growing. This has been exacerbated by the pandemic, which resulted in hundreds of workers leaving the industry.

To meet this demand, I would encourage more young people to give support work a go. I believe it can benefit you in many ways. Firstly, you should be able to find work that will fit into your life and schedule even if you have school or university because different people with disability require assistance at different times. This isn’t to say that you must dedicate your life to disability support. However, giving it a go and experiencing the work can open your eyes to different avenues of helping people you may not have considered before. Support work can be as flexible as any other casual or part-time job.

Even though money shouldn’t be the reason people get into support work, it is beneficial to note that it pays more than a hospitality or retail wage. Some people and companies will hire qualified workers only, while others don’t mind if you aren’t qualified. In Australia, a support work qualification usually involves doing a TAFE course. Some companies might allow you to study to get the certificate while you work, and others will also pay for your training, allowing you to add to your CV and increase future work opportunities.

I, and many other people I know personally prefer to hire younger support workers as we feel we can relate to them better as we are more likely to have similar interests and flexibility.

This work can increase insight into how people with a disability live their lives and demonstrate that everyone in the community has the same desires across the spectrum of abilities experienced. This work can also offer the opportunity to do many different activities; for example, my support workers have assisted me in attending music festivals, national and international poker tournaments, and government policy roundtables or other disability advocacy events, to name a few. Workers can also better understand human differences whilst learning compassion and patience along the way.

In a world where we are often swept away by our own problems and lives, support work can offer the opportunity to broaden your worldview and experience new activities that you might never have considered participating in. A stronger focus on support work also encourages society to prioritise and value community care.

So, if you think you’re ready to dive into the diverse world of support work, companies such as HireUp and Mable are great places to start. HireUp employ you as a support worker, taking care of superannuation and tax, whereas Mable hires you as a contractor. HireUp is probably the simpler of the two; however, they both allow you to sign up online. From there, you can download an app for each company to make applying for jobs straightforward. You can pick and choose which jobs to apply for, and people with a disability can find their best match.

If you have any questions about support work, please feel free to hit me up.