What are Business Services?

FaHCSIA funds a network of approximately 362 business service outlets across Australia to provide supported employment assistance to approximately 18,000 people with moderate to severe disability who need substantial ongoing support to maintain their employment.

The business service sector in Australia has its roots in the early 1950s when families of people with disabilities established sheltered workshops to provide vocational activity for people with disability. At this time employment opportunities for people with disability were extremely limited.

The introduction of the Commonwealth Disability Services Act (1986) enshrined principles and objectives for disability service delivery into legislation. From this time, the older style sheltered workshops moved into a business services model, as employment for people with disability emerged as a national priority for the Australian Government.

Nearly ten years later in 1996 the Australian Government announced further reforms to improve service quality, to match service funding to the support needs of people with disability receiving assistance, and to link funding to employment outcomes.

Since that time an agenda of reforms have been introduced to the business service sector. The mainstays of the reforms are the introduction of legislated Quality Assurance standards that must be independently assessed as met as a pre-condition of ongoing funding from the Australian Government, and a funding model that links payments to individual support needs.

From 2004, a significant package of $99m was introduced over 4 years to assist business services and their employees with disability respond to the changes.

What business services do

Business services are commercial enterprises enabling people with disability to engage in a wide variety of work tasks such as packaging, assembly, production, recycling, screen printing, plant nursery, garden maintenance and landscaping, cleaning services, laundry services and food services. Employees of business services enjoy the same working conditions as those in the general workforce. For more information on business service products and services, visit the Bizability website.

Who is my local business service provider?

With business service outlets in nearly 362 locations across Australia, there is likely to be a provider in your region. To locate your nearest business service, visit the Bizability website.

What if I want more information?

For further information about:

• working in a business service, or seeking further information about business services for a person in your care:
  • Call Centrelink on 13 2717
  • Business Service Information for School leavers - PDF [207kb]
  • PDF Business Service Information for parents and carers - PDF [142kb]
• buying products from a business service.
• hearing about business services from a business service perspective.
• finding out more about people with disability and employment.
• finding out more about the experience of people with disability.