NDIA Accountability Project

Worker exploitation, fraud against NDIS participants, and workplace safety concerns in the disability sector

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Submission

Inquiry into the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) (Integrity and Safeguarding) Bill 2025

Submitter: Angus McFarland, Branch Secretary Organisation: Australian Services Union NSW & ACT (Services) Branch Address: Level 1, 39-47 Renwick Street Redfern NSW 2016 Phone: 02 9310 4000 Email: Date: 4 March 2026

Submission from Australian Services Union (ASU) on National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)

On behalf of the Australian Services Union (ASU), I thank you for the opportunity to provide this submission to the Community Affairs Legislation Committee Inquiry into the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) (Integrity and Safeguarding) Bill 2025.

The ASU is one of Australia’s largest unions, representing 135,000 workers across the country in a range of industries including the social and community sector, local government, call centres, aviation, private and public sectors, and disability sectors.

In the disability sector, ASU members work across a wide range of non-government providers, including not-for-profit, faith-based, small and medium sized employers and for-profit businesses. ASU members work as disability support workers, local area coordinators, service coordinators, team leaders, advocates, sole traders and platform workers in residential and independent supporting living services, and a range of other roles. Many of the people with whom our members work are experiencing, or at risk of experiencing crisis, disadvantage, social dislocation or marginalisation.

These ASU members are highly skilled practitioners. They hold qualifications in social sciences, welfare work, disability work, social work, youth work, child protection community work, mental health, drugs and alcohol counselling, and financial counselling. We believe that we are therefore uniquely placed to contribute to your deliberations on the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) (Integrity and Safeguarding) Bill 2025.

The ASU has a strong record of support for the NDIS. In addition to the ASU’s support for the introduction of the NDIS, we have continued to provide input into all reviews and proposed changes to the NDIS, particularly changes that strengthen measures to reduce the risk of:

  • abuse, neglect or exploitation of NDIS participants;
  • acts of fraud against the NDIS and NDIS participants;
  • exploitation and underpayment of workers;
  • WHS hazards and injuries in NDIS workplaces.

The ASU recognises that safeguarding powers that are in the interest of people with disability align with the interests of workers. We support the continued review of the measures that have been introduced to date as our experience is that despite the legislative changes that have been made to the NDIS legislation there has been a proliferation of bad actors in the NDIS exploiting both people with disability and workers. In NSW alone the ASU has investigated 102 providers over last 18 months for breaches such as failure to pay superannuation, underpayments and other Award breaches – in most cases we also find and report participant abuse or neglect or fraud.

These breaches undermine the integrity and the effectiveness of the NDIS.

The ASU recognises that the vast majority of NDIS providers comply with the NDIS Practice Standards and Code of Conduct to provide safe and quality NDIS supports. However, the bad actors in the NDS necessitate expansion of the NDIS safeguarding powers to ensure the NDIS is sustainable, effective, safe and operates with integrity.

The ASU supports the core objectives of the Bill, in particular we support higher penalties for breaches by providers, we strongly recommend these penalties should be aligned with the penalties for breaches of work health and safety (WHS) laws.

The ASU provides that following feedback on the elements of the Bill:

  • risk of abuse and/or injury. The ASU recommends that the Bill provide specific
  • circumstances in which a plan can have funding reduced.
  • We also recommend that clear independent review and appeal rights for NDIS plan variations are
  • enshrined in legislation.

The ASU notes the anxiety in the disability community about this and supports the recommendations and feedback provided by PWDA, Inclusion Australia and Every Australia Counts in their submissions to the Inquiry. These organisations collectively represent the disability community of Australia and are best placed to inform the Inquiry’s deliberations from the perspective of people with disability.