Aged Care Workforce Compliance: A Complete Guide

Workforce compliance is one of the most complex and consequential areas of aged care regulation. Under the Aged Care Act 2024, providers face a web of interconnected obligations covering who can work in aged care, what qualifications and screening they need, how many staff must be on duty, what they must be paid, and how they must conduct themselves. Getting workforce compliance wrong can result in regulatory action, financial penalties, and — most importantly — harm to the people in your care.

Use the applicable screening pathway for the worker and services delivered. Current Department guidance recognises a police certificate no older than three years or an NDIS Worker Screening Clearance; do not require both by default. Separate NDIS role requirements and the Rules’ conditional arrangements need individual review.

Verify evidence, record the reviewer and date, and give renewals an owner. Some offences exclude a person from work; a provider risk assessment cannot override those exclusions. Respond to clearance changes and suitability concerns between renewals.

See the worker-screening guide for current primary sources and a practical review process.

Aged care workers must complete mandatory training to ensure they have the knowledge and skills to deliver safe, quality care. While the Aged Care Act 2024 does not prescribe a specific training curriculum, the ACQSC expects providers to ensure their workforce is competent in key areas:

• Dementia care — all workers who deliver direct care must have training in understanding and responding to dementia, including communication strategies, behavioural support, and person-centred approaches.
• Infection prevention and control — particularly important since the COVID-19 pandemic, all workers must understand standard precautions, hand hygiene, personal protective equipment (PPE), and outbreak management.
• Manual handling — workers involved in personal care and mobility support must be trained in safe manual handling techniques to prevent injury to themselves and consumers.
• Medication awareness — workers who assist with medications must understand medication safety, the difference between assisting and administering, and when to escalate concerns.
• Abuse recognition and reporting — all workers must be trained to recognise signs of abuse, neglect, and exploitation, and understand their obligation to report through SIRS and internal reporting channels.
• First aid and CPR — clinical and personal care staff typically require current first aid and CPR certification.

Providers must track training completion and expiry for all workers and ensure refresher training is completed on schedule. Training records are a key evidence source for Standard 2 (The Organisation) during assessment contacts.

Residential care homes should review delivery against their applicable total and RN care-minute targets, using the eligible workers, activities and reporting period in the Department's current guide. The 215/44 figures are sector benchmarks, not uniform home targets.

Keep source time records, activity allocation, approvals and corrections connected. Review continuous RN coverage separately, including any applicable exemption. Allied-health services are not counted in this care-minute requirement.

Each approved residential care home must have an RN onsite and on duty at all times, subject to an approved exemption. The Department’s 24/7 RN guidance explains that eligible rural and remote homes can apply for exemptions of up to 12 months. Workforce shortages alone do not establish an exemption.

Keep the home’s current exemption decision, conditions and alternative clinical arrangements with its coverage records. Continue to plan for absences and replacement cover. An exemption from continuous RN coverage does not remove the home’s other care obligations.

Compare rostered cover with actual attendance and record gaps and the response taken. Report RN coverage monthly through the Government Provider Management System (GPMS), following the applicable guidance. Review this separately from quarterly care-minute targets; an average care-minute result does not demonstrate continuous coverage.

The Code of Conduct guide explains the eight behaviours in the Commission’s published order. The Code applies to registered providers, their responsible persons and aged care workers within its scope.

Providers must support and prepare people to comply and take reasonable steps to secure compliance. Keep the current policy version, acknowledgement records and any linked learning distinct. Set refresher arrangements appropriate to your organisation; do not present an annual acknowledgement schedule as a universal statutory rule.

When a concern arises, consider immediate safety, a fair investigation and any separate reporting obligation. A conduct concern may also be a SIRS-reportable incident. Assess reportability and complete the required external notification rather than treating an internal case record as a submission.

Keep industrial obligations alongside workforce screening and training in your operating review. Start with the applicable award or agreement, then check the classification decision, actual work, shift arrangement and effective rates.

Our SCHADS guide explains the distinctions between streams, shift rules and travel claims. The payroll guide turns those decisions into a repeatable review process.

For a Statura Care demonstration, bring a changed shift and a travel claim. Follow the payroll workflow from completed time through calculation review, worker matching, provider handoff and reconciliation. Confirm the setup needed for your awards and agreements and the responsibilities your team retains.