Up to 100 Wyndham council jobs are in limbo due to the introduction of the federal government’s aged-care reforms.
Wyndham council voted last week to continue offering in-home support services – which includes domestic assistance, personal care and respite – until federal funding ends on June 30, 2020.
After that, it is likely that the council will cease providing in-home care.
Under the new system, residents will register with the My Aged Care website, be assessed as to what services they may need and given a choice of service providers.
Deputy mayor Walter Villagonzalo said that post-2020, the council would “need to consider a transition plan for our community and Wyndham city staff”.
“The exact timing of this transition is not yet known, but council is committed to keeping residents, clients and their carers informed throughout this journey,” he said.
City life director Jenny McMahon added: “We’re supporting our staff to consider what they might want to do in the future, where they might want to go.
“Clearly, there’ll be lots of jobs in the sector, I have no doubt about that. There’s many more agencies starting to provide services in Wyndham than what there were before.”
Ms McMahon said the changes could affect about 100 full-time, part-time and casual staff, some of whom were already working with other providers.
The council also voted last week to not register as a National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) service provider for the foreseeable future.
But Ms McMahon said the council might offer disability services in the future if there was demand.
“While we’ve decided not to register as a NDIS provider at this point in time, what we’re actually doing is monitoring the sector really closely and watching the development of those services to ensure that the community’s needs are being met,” she said.
“If there is a case where there is a gap or an unmet need, then council may go back and reconsider that.”
