25 aged care homes in regional and remote towns will be able to slash their agency costs, thanks to the employment of nearly 500 Filipino staff across the country.

With regional aged care providers spending up to $50,000 per month on agency staff to meet mandated care minutes, it's not surprising the program to bring new, trained workers to the sector has been warmly welcomed.

At the Aged Care and Disability service operated by Gilgandra Shire Council, 340km northwest of Sydney, the program has been so successful that the Council is planning to recruit more Filipino workers.

"The initiative has been incredibly successful, and we are excited to announce plans to employ an additional 10 international workers," said Donna Dobson, Director Aged Care and Disability for Gilgandra Shire Council.

With an expected shortage of 110,000 direct care workers in aged care by 2030, migration is a "vital" part of the workforce solution, said Tom Symondson, CEO of Aged and Community Care Providers Association.

“While we can’t rely on overseas workers alone, we know that they will continue to make up a significant part of the aged care workforce,” Tom said.

Dan Sandiford, CEO of Groworx Global, the Australian international recruitment firm that has brought the Filipino staff to Australia, has been recognised by ACCPA for its work. Groworx Global, which recruits, trains, and manages the migration of the healthcare workers, is mainly working with NSW and Queensland aged care providers, but is expanding to serve regional operators around Australia.

The largest database of homes: agedcare101