Disability support worker
Support people with disability to live, work and participate in the community under NDIS-funded plans.
Registration: NDIS Worker Screening
Salary
Cited figures only: median full-time weekly earnings for the ANZSCO unit group Aged and Disabled Carers (4231) from Your Career (Jobs and Skills Australia), and where available the QILT graduate starting salary for the matching study area.
| Figure | AUD | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Median full-time weekly earnings | $1564 | Your Career (2026-09-23) |
Jobs, demand and who does this work
Figures for the ANZSCO occupation Aged and Disabled Carer (423111), the closest official match for disability support worker, from Your Career (Jobs and Skills Australia data, sourced 2026-09-23).
- People employed
- 364,700
- Future demand
- Very strong
- Work full-time
- 40%
- Average full-time hours
- 43 a week
- Women
- 76%
- Median age
- 42
Where the jobs are (share of workers)
| NSW | 29.7% |
| VIC | 23% |
| QLD | 22% |
| WA | 11.2% |
| SA | 9.3% |
| TAS | 2.8% |
| ACT | 1% |
| NT | 1% |
Highest qualification held by workers
| Postgraduate qualification | 5.3% |
| Bachelor degree | 13.4% |
| Diploma or advanced diploma | 15% |
| Certificate I-IV | 36.6% |
| Year 12 | 12.8% |
| Below Year 12 | 10.2% |
What a disability support worker actually does
Disability support workers deliver hands-on support to people whose NDIS plans pay for community access, daily living, supported independent living (SIL) or short-term accommodation. A typical community-access shift involves picking up a participant, supporting them to attend a planned activity (gym, swimming, shopping, work, social group), then returning them home. SIL shifts cover a full household routine across an 8-hour, 12-hour or sleepover roster: morning routine, breakfast, transport to day programmes, dinner, medication, settling. Some participants need 2-to-1 support due to behaviours of concern, and the worker follows a behaviour-support plan written by a positive behaviour-support practitioner. Hours are irregular: split shifts, sleepovers, weekend rosters. The pay is better than aged care once you have Cert IV and Cert III plus experience, but unpredictable rosters can make budgeting hard. The work emphasises dignity of risk and choice and control.
Typical tasks
- Support active participation and dignity of risk.
- Provide personal care and household assistance.
- Document service delivery and report incidents.
Skills you'll use
- Personal care while respecting dignity and consent
- Following a behaviour-support plan and proactive de-escalation
- Mealtime management (PEG feeding, modified diets, swallowing safety)
- Manual handling with hoists, slings and sit-to-stand transfers
- Documenting service delivery in NDIS-compliant systems
- Supporting participants with communication boards or AAC devices
- Mandatory reporting and serious-incident reporting
- Building positive long-term relationships
How to become one
- 1Finish Year 10 (minimum) or Year 12 with general literacy
- 2Complete a Certificate III in Individual Support (Disability) (CHC33021) or a Certificate IV in Disability Support (CHC43121)
- 3Pass the required supervised work placement hours
- 4Apply for the NDIS Worker Screening Check, a Working with Children Check (if applicable) and a National Police Check
- 5Complete the mandatory NDIS Worker Orientation Module and any provider-specific induction
- 6Apply for shifts with NDIS-registered providers, sole-trader work, or a participant directly
- 7Consider stepping up to Diploma of Community Services or a behaviour-support practitioner pathway
Where you can work
- NDIS-registered providers running SIL, STA and community-access
- Sole-trader work directly with self-managed participants
- Group homes and supported-residential services
- Specialist disability accommodation (SDA)
- Schools and post-school options programmes
- Hospitals as in-reach disability liaison workers
- Day programmes and supported employment services
Career progression
Typical stages and roles. Years of experience are a rough guide; pay at each stage depends on the employer, award or agreement.
- Entry-level support worker0-2 yearsTypical roles: Disability support worker, SIL shift worker, Community-access worker
- Senior support worker2-5 yearsTypical roles: Senior disability support worker, Lead worker, Mentor
- Coordinator or specialist5+ yearsTypical roles: Service coordinator, House supervisor, Behaviour-support practitioner
Is this for you?
You might love this if
- You can take direction from a participant on how they want their day to go
- You're patient with very slow goal progress
- You can stay calm when behaviours escalate
- You're physically fit and trained in safe manual handling
- You can build trust over months and years with the same person
This might not suit you if
- You can't handle the unpredictability of split shifts and sleepovers
- You don't cope with restraint or seclusion situations even when authorised
- You want a quiet office job
- You can't follow a structured behaviour-support plan when emotions run high
Ways in
Uni and TAFE routes for disability support worker. We only list pathways that actually lead to this occupation.
University
Bachelor degrees that lead to this career.
No direct undergraduate pathway. Consider postgraduate study after a related bachelor degree.
TAFE / VET
Nationally accredited Certificate and Diploma qualifications.
Sources
ExamExplained does not publish predictive salary figures. For current Australian earnings data check Your Career (yourcareer.gov.au) directly. Career classifications follow the ABS ANZSCO 2022 release.