Focus area 3 – Supporting access to meaningful employment and independence

a) Being inclusive and accepting of our colleagues with disability

Action 1: Develop and deliver multi-media campaign encouraging employees to self-identify as having a disability in StaffLink (Ensure psychological safety exists)

Responsible: NSW Ambulance

Year due: 2026

Measure: Increase number of people who identify as having a disability in StaffLink by 5%.

Action 2: Prioritise people with disability as the focus of NSW Ambulance Employee Resource Group activity

Responsible: NSW Ambulance

Year due: 2026

Measure: ERG launched and supported with 2 major activations per year.

Action 3: Review exit interview surveys and develop insights that improve our peoples’ experiences

Responsible: NSW Ambulance

Years due: 2026-2029

Measure: Improvements made.

Action 4: Collaborate with recruitment and HealthShare whole of organisation leaders and managers, to ensure recruitment systems and processes are equitable for people with disability

Responsible: HealthShare NSW

Years due: 2026-2029

Measure: Achieve PMES Recruitment score for employees with disability within 5% of overall HealthShare NSW result (2022 PMES = 10% lower).

Action 5: Facilitate the Diversity Inclusion and Belonging Lead Community of Practice to provide a conduit across the system to share strategies, successes and learnings in Disability Employment and Inclusion initiatives occurring at a local level

Responsible: Ministry of Health

Years due: 2026-2029

Measure: Facilitate and attend regular meetings.

Action 6: Lead development and implementation of the Workplace Adjustment Policy and Passport

Responsible: Ministry of Health

Year due: 2026

Measure: Implemented.

b) Employing more people with disability across our system

Action 1: Embed disability inclusion principles into the review of the Recruitment and Selection of Staff to the NSW Health Service Policy (PD2023_024), including the relevant recommendations from the Get Skilled Access Nursing and Midwifery Review, and provide practical recruitment guidance and tools

Responsible: Ministry of Health

Year due: 2026

Measures: Disability inclusion principles are embedded in updated policy. Toolkits and guidance identified, developed and distributed.

Action 2: Deliver and promote trainee or intern positions for people with disability

Responsible:

• Ministry of Health
• NSW Health Pathology
• HealthShare NSW
• eHealth NSW

Years due: 2026-2029

Measures: Number of positions offered. Number of trainees employed. Employ +/- 3 interns per year.

Action 3: Increase the number of targeted roles for people with disability filled

Responsible: eHealth NSW

Years due: 2026-2029

Measure: Number of roles filled.

Action 4: Conduct discovery work on strategic enablers and barriers of disability inclusion in the NSW Health Pathology workforce

Responsible: NSW Health Pathology

Years due: 2026-2029

Measure: Consultation and feedback from employee resource group(s) and hiring managers.

Action 5: Build relationships with education providers to expand and strengthen pathways into our organisation

Responsible: HealthShare NSW

Years due: 2026-2029

Measure: Connect with ≥2 new key university, TAFE and schools each year.

c) Ensuring staff with disability have equal access to career development opportunities and peer support

Action 1: Scope possible opportunities for people with disability to gain time-limited workplace experiences

Responsible:

• Strategic Planning, Economics and Experience Branch, Ministry of Health
• System Information and Analytics Branch, Ministry of Health
• Social Policy and Health Equity Branch, Ministry of Health
• Health Protection NSW
• NSW Ambulance

Year due: 2027

Measures: Consultative scoping completed. Number workplace experiences offered.

Action 2: Develop the NSW Health Pathology Accessibility and Inclusion Implementation Plan to support delivery of Our People Strategy priority outcomes and supporting working and governance groups

Responsible: NSW Health Pathology

Years due: 2026-2027

Measures: Launch of the NSW Health Pathology Accessibility and Inclusion Implementation Plan. Evidence of a Working group implementation plan and milestones.

Action 3: Complete career mapping for high-potential employees with disability to increase representation of employees with disability in Tier 1-5 roles

Responsible: HealthShare NSW

Years due: 2026-2029

Measure: Achieve ≥ 12% of employees with disability in Tier 1-5 leadership roles (8.9% at Dec 22).

Action 4: Collaborate with and support the NSW Health Disability Employee Network to provide a conduit across the system to share experiences of our staff with disability and embed lived experience into other disability employment initiatives

Responsible: Ministry of Health

Years due: 2026-2029

Measure: Attend and support Disability Employee Network meetings.

d) Build the capability of managers and human resources in relation to employment of people with disability

Action 1: Implement program of promotion of Public Service Commission training ‘Removing the barriers: Inclusion of people with disability’ eLearning course for Managers and Disability and inclusive workplaces resources

Responsible: Ministry of Health

Years due: 2026-2029

Measures: Promotion implemented. Number completed training module.

Action 2: Build disability training into manager’s Growth and Development plans including encouraging completion of My Health Learning ‘Employment: People with disability’ course

Responsible: HealthShare NSW

Years due: Bi-annually

Measure: Achieve ≥80% completion rate (67.1% at Nov 2022).

Action 3: Develop resources for use by NSW Ambulance Recruitment Team, Convenors, Panellists and Hiring Managers on inclusive recruitment

Responsible: NSW Ambulance

Year due: 2026

Measures: Resources developed. 8% of corporate roles advertised as targeted under GSE (General) Rule 26.