PROJECT
Care Economy Workforce Recruitment: Using Internal Marketing and Care Archetype Framework
Examining how community services leadership can improve recruitment and retention strategies for care workers
In Tasmania, as of February 2023, approximately 47,200 individuals were employed in the Health Care and Social Assistance sector, encompassing aged care, disability services, education and care, social services, and medical services (ABS, 2023).
The care economy serves as a cornerstone of Tasmania’s commitment to equitable healthcare and social welfare for all its residents. Not only is it the state’s largest employment sector, but it is also projected to grow significantly in the coming decades.
However, as Tasmania strives to meet the rising demands of this critical sector, its care workforce faces substantial challenges. These include limited access to a suitable demographic pool for workforce participation, geographical isolation, inequities in resources, structures, and funding, an increasing trend toward work casualisation, a shortage of skilled professionals, and societal undervaluation of care work.
These issues are further exacerbated by Tasmania’s ageing population and higher-thanaverage rates of individuals requiring care due to physical or mental disabilities, intensifying the strain on workforce recruitment and retention.
To address these challenges, a comprehensive research study was convened by the Workforce Coordination Project, a funded project of Skills Tasmania, which examined the unique dynamics and obstacles faced by Tasmania’s care workforce across aged care, disability, education and care, and social services during 2022-2024.
The purpose of the study was to understand how community services leadership can improve recruitment and retention strategies for care workers.
Goals
Strengthen recruitment and retention in the care economy with coordinated, people-focused marketing strategies
Develop novel care worker archetype framework to address recruitment challenges across care sectors
Use systems thinking to create lasting solutions that improve care worker satisfaction and reduce workforce shortages
Project collaborators
- Dr Gauri Laud (The University of Western Australia)
- Dr Cheryl Leo (Murdoch University)
- Dr Lauren McGrow (in industry)
- Dr Sajith Siriwardana (in government body)
Work with us
Be part of the next stage of this project as we bring the framework to life through a digital platform for service providers. We're actively seeking partners in aged care, community care, disability care, and early childhood education and care to collaborate with us.
Join us in shaping practical, scalable solutions for the care workforce.
To get involved or learn more, please contact Dr Gauri Laud through the details below.
