Decent working conditions for care workers?: the intersections of employment regulation, the funding market and gender norms

In the funding market created by Australian state and federal governments to outsource the delivery of care services, governments are the only purchasers of community services provided by non-government agencies. The funding market for care work has shaped the employment policies and practices of non-government agencies in the feminised community services sector, in ways that both constrain and trump protections provided through labour regulation, including in the new Fair Work regime. This article documents key intersections and tensions between labour regulation, the regulatory force of the funding market and gender norms, and their impact not only on wages, but also on the meagre working time standards that currently exist for many frontline care workers. The article also canvasses the potential of current regulatory options to ensure third parties, such as governments, have obligations to negotiate decent working conditions in the employment they effectively control.