When Is the Right Time to Bring in a Recruitment Agency for Aged Care Staffing?

The aged care sector in Australia is facing mounting pressure from rising demand and complex care needs to regulatory reform and a tightening workforce. For providers, ensuring a consistent, qualified, and reliable workforce is not just a preference — it’s a necessity for compliance, care quality, and sustainability.

Yet even the best internal HR teams can reach a point where they’re stretched thin. So, when is the right time to bring in a recruitment agency to support your aged care workforce strategy?

1. When You’re Facing Consistent Staff Shortages

If your organisation is regularly struggling to fill shifts, experiencing last-minute cancellations, or seeing a spike in unplanned leave, it may be time to engage a recruitment partner. Aged care recruitment agencies specialise in maintaining a pool of pre-screened, compliant workers ready to deploy at short notice, ensuring your residents continue receiving quality care even during staffing gaps.

2. When You’re Entering a Growth or Transition Phase

Opening a new facility, expanding services, or recovering from a period of high turnover all require a rapid scale-up of workforce capacity. Recruitment agencies can provide temporary staffing to ease the pressure while permanent roles are filled, and in many cases, assist with sourcing long-term candidates too.

3. When You Need Help Navigating Compliance

With mandatory minimum care minutes, workforce accreditation requirements, and ongoing changes to the Aged Care Quality Standards, maintaining a compliant workforce is more complex than ever. Specialist recruitment agencies in aged care understand the regulatory landscape and ensure every candidate meets the requirements, from police checks to AHPRA registration, manual handling training, and up-to-date vaccination records.

4. When Internal Hiring Timelines Are Too Slow

Internal recruitment processes often can’t keep pace with immediate workforce needs. Vacant shifts today can result in compliance risks and increased pressure on your existing team. A good agency can fill shifts within hours, not days or weeks, buying you time while still meeting care obligations.

5. When Workforce Quality Is Affecting Resident Outcomes

Poor staff attitude, burnout, or skill mismatches can all contribute to a decline in care quality. Agencies that take a values-based and person-centred approach to recruitment can help lift the calibre of your workforce by matching not just for skill and availability, but also for cultural fit and empathy.

6. When You're Spending Too Much Time Managing Rosters and Not Enough on Strategy

A quality agency can take the administrative burden off your team. Many also offer rostering integration, shift fulfilment tracking, and spend transparency reporting, freeing your leadership team to focus on bigger-picture workforce planning and quality improvement initiatives.

7. When Regional or Rural Location Is a Barrier

For providers in remote or regional areas, accessing a skilled workforce can be even harder. Agencies with travel nursing capabilities or regional recruitment programs can bridge that gap by mobilising a broader pool of candidates, including those willing to travel or relocate temporarily.

Final Thoughts

Recruitment agencies shouldn’t be seen as a last resort. They are strategic partners in delivering high-quality, person-centred care. Whether you need short-term shift coverage, help with permanent hiring, or want to reduce the stress on your internal teams, the right time to engage a recruitment agency is before your workforce challenges start affecting your care standards.

Partnering early allows for proactive planning, better staff continuity, and stronger outcomes for residents and teams alike.

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Delay in the Aged Care Act: What It Means for Our Workforce & Sector Stability

By Sarah Buckley • June 17, 2025

As a recruitment professional deeply embedded in Australia’s aged care and health sectors, I’ve been watching the long-awaited Aged Care Act reform process closely. For years now, this legislation has been positioned as a pivotal reset for our industry , setting clearer expectations on care quality, safety, governance, and importantly, workforce capability. But with the Federal Government recently delaying the introduction of the Act, the sector now sits in an uncertain holding pattern. And for those of us tasked with sourcing, building and supporting the workforce that underpins care delivery, this delay presents both immediate challenges and longer-term concerns. The Workforce Was Already Under Pressure The aged care workforce has been under significant strain for years. Chronic staff shortages, growing demand for services, increasing complexity of care needs, and rising compliance obligations have all combined to make recruitment and retention more difficult. The promise of a clearer legislative framework through the Aged Care Act was expected to provide the sector with certainty: more defined role expectations, consistent training and credentialing standards, and hopefully a framework that recognised and valued the workforce for the skilled professionals they are. For recruiters like myself, this would have allowed us to better align candidate pipelines to consistent national expectations. Workforce planning would have become more structured, training pathways more standardised, and career development more transparent for staff entering or progressing through the sector. The Cost of Uncertainty This delay prolongs the uncertainty for providers, candidates, and recruiters alike. Many providers are unsure whether to make immediate changes to internal governance, care models, or training investments, knowing that legislative requirements could shift again once the Act is finally passed. For recruitment agencies, this creates a challenge in preparing candidates to meet future standards when those standards remain undefined. We also face the risk of workforce fatigue. After years of reform discussions, aged care workers on the floor, many of whom we recruit, place, and support have grown frustrated by the stop-start nature of reform. Promises of better wages, safer workloads, and clearer career paths have not yet materialised at the scale many expected. This affects morale, retention and in some cases, candidate supply. Provider Hesitation Slows Recruitment Pipelines Many providers are now adopting a “wait and see” approach, which affects recruitment activity. Larger capital decisions, workforce expansion plans, and investment in permanent headcount are in some cases being postponed. Instead, providers are relying on temporary staffing models to maintain flexibility until the new Act’s requirements become clearer. While this has kept agency models busy in the short term, it’s not a sustainable or strategic long-term workforce solution. From my perspective, the lack of legislative certainty delays providers’ ability to forecast their workforce needs with confidence. As recruiters, we are most effective when we can partner with providers to build tailored pipelines that address future skills gaps, design upskilling programs, and foster retention initiatives. Without clarity, these strategic conversations remain difficult to execute. Recruitment Is Evolving While We Wait Despite the delay, recruitment models in aged care are continuing to evolve. Providers are becoming more focused on candidate quality, cultural fit, and long-term engagement strategies rather than purely filling shifts. This shift while positive requires alignment with clear role definitions and sector-wide credentialing standards, which the Act was meant to help address. At Collarcare, we have continued to invest in candidate education, compliance, and ongoing professional development including the integration of programs like AusMed, Aged Care Passport credentials, and tailored onboarding pathways to prepare our workforce for the higher expectations the new Act will eventually formalise. We’re not waiting for legislation to lift the standard of care or candidate readiness. What We Need Moving Forward While delays are frustrating, this period can still be used constructively. Providers, workforce agencies, training organisations, and government bodies must stay proactive: Continue to lift standards voluntarily: We should not wait for the Act to tell us what good care looks like. Invest in training now: Build capability early, so your workforce is ready when reforms do arrive. Prioritise workforce wellbeing: The sector’s ongoing sustainability relies on attracting and retaining skilled, passionate care staff. Strengthen partnerships: Providers and recruiters must collaborate closely to manage fluctuating workforce demands while balancing compliance and care quality. The delay in the Aged Care Act is disappointing, but it does not mean the sector can afford to pause. As a recruitment professional my role remains to help providers navigate this uncertainty, continue building sustainable workforce models, and prepare for the inevitable reforms that will come, whether in six months or two years. Our sector deserves certainty, but more importantly, our residents deserve safe, consistent, and compassionate care delivered by a workforce that feels valued and supported. That responsibility cannot wait.

What a True Partnership Looks Like Between an Agency and a Provider

By Sarah Buckley • May 29, 2025

In today’s health and aged care landscape, workforce challenges are constant, but the solutions don’t need to be. For providers navigating shifting rosters, complex care requirements, and budget constraints, partnering with a nursing and aged care agency can be transformative. But not all agency relationships are equal. At Collarcare, we believe the difference between a transactional supplier and a true workforce partner comes down to three things: collaboration, transparency, and a shared commitment to continuous improvement. Here’s what a real partnership looks like: Two-Way Feedback, Not One-Way Blame An effective partnership isn’t just about sending workers to site, it’s about creating a feedback loop that improves outcomes on both sides. We encourage regular check-ins with providers to discuss what’s working, where gaps are appearing, and how we can lift performance—whether it’s a training need, a better worker match, or a rostering pattern that could be improved. Likewise, we value honest feedback from our workers too, which helps us guide culture fit, location suitability, and support needs. The result? Fewer mismatches, faster response times, and a safer, more cohesive workforce. Collaboration Over Control Instead of pushing fixed processes, we build systems around your needs. That might mean co-designing an induction pack, adjusting the way shift requests are submitted, or creating a custom escalation framework for urgent absences. We aim to become an extension of your workforce planning team—not just a last-minute stopgap. We also work closely with clinical leaders and facility managers to map care minute requirements, plan ahead for seasonal fluctuations, and build in contingency support well before the pressure hits. Transparency in Spend and Strategy One of the biggest concerns we hear from providers is not knowing where their agency dollars are going. That’s why we prioritise cost transparency, breaking down how our rates are structured, flagging avoidable costs, and providing usage reports that support budgeting and care minute tracking. Our partners receive: Clear breakdowns of penalty rates, travel, and allowance use Real-time timesheet visibility Advice on how to reduce overtime reliance Insights into where spend might indicate a deeper staffing issue Transparency in spend builds trust. It also helps providers make informed, long-term decisions. Identifying When a Permanent Hire Is the Right Move While agency support plays a critical role in flexibility, it’s not always the best long-term solution. A true partner will tell you when it’s time to invest in permanent staffing—and help you do it. We monitor patterns that signal a need for stability, such as repeated bookings at the same site, extended placements with the same worker, or rising costs in one area of care. When this happens, we’ll work with you to convert high-performing temps into permanent staff, or source permanent candidates through our recruitment division. This proactive approach ensures your agency use remains strategic—not reactive. Final Thoughts A true partnership isn’t built on shift fulfilment alone. It’s built on mutual respect, shared goals, and a willingness to adapt together. At Collarcare, we don’t just place staff, we help providers build sustainable, resilient workforces. If you’re looking for more than a supplier, let’s talk.

Finding Talent in Regional Australia: Why It’s Hard - and How Collarcare Is Doing It Differently

By Sarah Buckley • May 23, 2025

Australia’s regional and remote healthcare facilities continue to face a persistent challenge: workforce shortages that directly impact the quality and consistency of care. While the demand for nurses, personal care workers, and allied health professionals in these areas is rising, attracting and retaining skilled talent remains an uphill battle. At Collarcare, we understand that a one-size-fits-all approach doesn't work when it comes to regional recruitment. That’s why we’ve built a national workforce strategy specifically designed to overcome these barriers and it's already making a meaningful difference for providers across the country. Why Regional Staffing Is So Challenging Several factors contribute to the difficulty of attracting healthcare professionals to regional and remote settings: Geographic isolation and limited access to amenities or professional development opportunities Increased workload and fewer on-site supports Short-term contract fatigue , with many candidates hesitant to move for temporary roles Housing shortages and inconsistent travel reimbursements Lack of visibility for regional roles in broader recruitment platforms As a result, many aged care homes, hospitals, and community services are left struggling to meet minimum staffing levels — especially during outbreaks, peak holiday periods, or unplanned leave. How Collarcare Is Taking a Different Approach We’re not just placing staff, we’re building sustainable, responsive workforce pipelines tailored to regional realities. Here’s how: 1. Local First, Always Our model prioritises sourcing talent locally where possible. We actively build relationships with clinicians based in or near regional areas, offering flexible working options and consistent placements to encourage retention. 2. Mobilising the Right Talent, the Right Way Where local supply is limited, we mobilise talent from metro areas, not just reactively, but strategically. This includes: Offering accommodation solutions and travel allowances Ensuring staff are fully briefed on community expectations and site protocols Working with clients to build multi-week rosters that make travel worthwhile 3. Real Relationships, Not Rostering Robots We take the time to get to know our staff . Our consultants speak with every candidate, understand their preferences, and support them throughout each placement, creating loyalty, confidence, and better continuity of care for our clients. 4. Rapid Response for Urgent Needs Many of our partner facilities rely on Collarcare for last-minute coverage during outbreaks, natural disasters, and unplanned absences. Our national pool of vetted, ready-to-work clinicians means we can respond swiftly and with quality. 5. A Values-Driven Workforce Our recruitment strategy is underpinned by quality and care, not just speed. Every candidate undergoes robust compliance screening, competency checks, and ongoing professional development through our learning partner, AusMed . Results That Matter What started as a bold idea in 2023 has grown into a trusted workforce partner supporting hundreds of aged care and health services across Australia — from Tasmania to Far North Queensland and everything in between. At Collarcare, we don’t just talk about supporting regional healthcare. We’ve built the infrastructure, team, and technology to deliver it — ethically, reliably, and with genuine care. Looking for support in your regional facility? Get in touch with our team to explore how Collarcare can help you build a stronger, more sustainable workforce. 1300 927 522 hello@collarcare.com.au