11/06/2026
Two weeks ago the Minister for Employment and Workplace relations, the Honourable Amanda Rishworth, announced significant reforms to Australia’s employment services. We deeply welcome these reforms.
Ensuring effective support is provided to people at the greatest distance from employment is critical to achieving employment and economic inclusion. This is the work we have been doing at the GOGO Foundation for the past 5 years.
Back in 2024, then the Minister for Social Services, Minister Rishworth recognised GOGO had something unique and impactful to offer. A grant from the Department of Social Services funded the life-changing services the GOGO Foundation was providing to women with the most complex barriers to employment.
These barriers include homelessness, domestic and family violence, trauma, social isolation, disrupted education, mental health challenges, poverty, caregiving responsibilities, experience of incarceration and long-term disengagement from the workforce.
GOGO Foundation's holistic, personalised, trauma-informed, wrap-around and long term-support is incredibly successful. 51% of our graduates are in safe and sustainable employment within 6 months of engaging with GOGO. The national average is 11.7%.
As Australia's employment services system moves toward a more differentiated model, we're excited by the opportunity to continue to shift the most marginalised out of unemployment.
We're already doing this work. We've built a strong methodology and framework grounded in trauma-informed, relational practice — and we look forward to what comes next.
Rishworth Miller-Frost MP FAICD Walker Gallagher Plibersek Hildyard and Skills Australia
