General News
9 September, 2025
Disability employment provider are-able closing October 31
Disability employment provider are-able will be closing locally having lost the region’s Federal Government contract.
The not-for-profit organisation lost the tender to continue providing disability employment services in the Maryborough region under the rebranded Inclusive Employment Australia program.
This means the Maryborough office, alongside sites in Ballarat and Ararat, will close on October 31.
According to are-able, the tender result represents a significant shift in the delivery of disability employment services across Australia.
The Federal Government are replacing the existing Disability Employment Services (DES) with Inclusive Employment Australia from November 1.
According to ABC reporting, this has seen multiple disability employment providers lose much of their Federal Government funding nation-wide — although are-able seems to not be among them.
Despite the changes are-able will maintain a local presence in Maryborough’s Mill House continuing their Finding and Keeping a Job and Plan Management NDIS programs.
The organisation’s interim CEO Jason Ernst said he’s proud of the work their teams have delivered in the region.
“While the tender outcome means changes for some of our sites, our dedication to participants, staff, and communities is unwavering. We are focused on ensuring a respectful and supported transition while looking for new opportunities to remain in the region,” he said.
Are-able confirmed with The Maryborough District Advertiser their employment consultants have been made redundant across the affected sites but did not clarify how many staff were impacted by print deadline.
However, it’s understood are-able are working with the region’s new provider to support staff in the transition.
It’s also understood that affected DES participants will be contacted by the government referring them to a new employment services provider in the region.
The organisation will continue supporting them until their closure.