Aged care leaders briefed on agency workforce risk

MELBOURNE, 14 October 2026 

Senior aged care leaders from across Victoria gathered at Hotel Chadstone Melbourne this morning, with more joining online, for Navigating Nursing Agency Liability, an executive briefing presented by Citation Legal and facilitated by Chris Barnard Health. 

Led by Michal Roucek, Partner at Citation Legal, and Zaynab Aly, Associate at Citation Legal, the session examined what host providers are legally responsible for when agency nurses and carers work on their sites. Around 30 leaders attended in person and a further 10 joined the livestream, representing about 23 aged care organisations. 

Providers are also being encouraged to look beyond the licence to the price. Labour Hire Authority guidance calls for a transparent rate breakdown covering wages, superannuation, payroll tax and WorkCover, which makes it worth asking two questions: is the agency’s rate realistically enough to meet all of its recruitment and compliance obligations, and are its quoted on-costs legitimate? Running a compliant agency costs money. If the rate looks too good to be true, that alone is a red flag. 

The briefing came as scrutiny of the sector’s agency workforce intensifies. Victoria introduced stricter fit and proper and financial viability tests for labour hire licences from 1 June 2026, and a host company that engages an unlicensed provider faces a maximum penalty of $669,120. 

Rather than a traditional legal seminar, the session was deliberately conversational. Attendees said the presenters broke complex, high-level legislation into clear, practical guidance, without jargon, and answered questions directly and knowledgeably. 

“He made really big topics easy to understand,” said one attendee. 

The room stayed engaged throughout, with a lively open Q&A throughout and after the briefing.

Citation Legal left providers with six practical steps: 

• Check the labour hire licence before engaging a provider, and keep checking, because a licence can be suspended overnight. 

• Put compliance responsibility, insurance and audit rights into the contract. 

• Test the agency’s rate against the award floor. If it doesn’t cover wages, penalties, super and on-costs, someone is paying the difference. 

• Use audit rights by reconciling rosters and sign-ins with payslips. 

• Verify qualifications and AHPRA registration directly rather than relying on a warranty. 

• Act quickly on red flags, and document every step. 

The briefing also highlighted that directors, executives and managers can be personally liable if they are “involved in” an agency’s underpayment under section 550 of the Fair Work Act, and that host providers’ work health and safety duties to agency staff cannot be contracted out. 

“Choosing an agency isn’t a procurement activity, it’s a compliance activity. When the Fair Work Ombudsman looks at a host, it asks two questions: what did you know, and what did you do about it? Providers who check, audit and document their decisions are in a far stronger position.” said Michal Roucek, Partner, Citation Legal. 

The Q&A reflected the real pressures providers are managing. Questions included: 

• Is it better practice for a provider to use its own agreement rather than the agency’s standard terms? 

• How should providers manage excessive hours and fatigue when an agency worker has worked across multiple host organisations? 

Both questions go to the heart of the briefing: providers need contracts that give them real audit and compliance rights, and fatigue limits and shift caps should apply across all of a worker’s placements, not just one site. 

 “The level of engagement this morning shows how important these questions are to providers right now. Our aim was to create a space where leaders could ask the difficult questions openly, and Michal and Zaynab gave them clear, practical answers they can take straight back to their organisations.” said Shehal Gomes, Operations Manager, Chris Barnard Health. 

Michal Roucek’s presentation, Engaging labour hire in aged care, is attached to this release, along with Citation Legal’s Workplace Relations Review 2026. The material is general information only and is not legal advice.

For over 15 years, Chris Barnard Health has been connecting caring professionals with individuals, providers and families who need them. It supports Australians in homes, facilities, hospitals and communities across Victoria, Tasmania, New South Wales and Queensland, through Support at Home, NDIS support, agency nursing and healthcare executive search. chrisbarnardhealth.com

Citation Legal is the in-house legal practice of Citation Group, which has supported Australian businesses for more than 30 years across HR, payroll, legal, safety and certification. Citation Legal advises employers on workplace relations, employment and migration law. citationgroup.com.au/legal 

Annelize Bekker,

Commercial Manager,

Chris Barnard Health 

0478 719 439

annelize@chrisbarnardhealth.com