ACTCOSS submission to the Inquiry into the Secure Local Jobs Code – Standing Committee on Public Accounts and Administration, ACT Legislative Assembly

The community sector shares the goal of secure, fair and sustainable work. However, feedback from ACTCOSS members consistently indicates that the Secure Local Jobs Code adds significant compliance and administrative costs without clear evidence that it is improving workforce outcomes, job security or service delivery in community services.

Community organisations already operate within extensive workplace, governance and accountability frameworks, while delivering essential services to Canberrans experiencing disadvantage. In a context of rising demand, workforce shortages and constrained funding, ACTCOSS argues that regulatory requirements must demonstrate a clear benefit and represent a good use of finite sector resources.

Our submission highlights that the strongest drivers of workforce stability are funding certainty, adequate indexation and longer-term service agreements. If governments want to support secure jobs in community services, investment in sustainable funding arrangements will have a far greater impact than additional compliance requirements.

Accordingly, ACTCOSS recommends that community service organisations be exempt from the Secure Local Jobs Code and that efforts to improve employment security focus on strengthening the funding and commissioning settings that underpin workforce retention and long-term sector sustainability.

The two key recommendations in the ACTCOSS submission are:

• Recommendation 1: Exempt community service organisations from the Secure Local Jobs Code.
• Recommendation 2: Strengthen employment security through sustainable funding arrangements for the community services sector.

ACTCOSS will also appear before the public hearing to expand on the issues raised in our submission and advocate for reforms that reduce unnecessary administrative burden while supporting a strong, sustainable community sector workforce.

Read our submission here ACTCOSS_Submission_Secure Local Jobs Code Inquiry_Sept 2026