Senior Workers' Compensation Eligibility Advisor

Fixed-Term/Full-Time (until 30-SEP-2026)

About the Department

The department provides a wide range of learning and development support and services.

The department provides policy leadership, plans for the future of education in Victoria and leads key cross-sector collaboration. The department plays an important system steward role by providing support, guidance, oversight and assurance across early childhood and school education systems, as well as directly providing school education and 50 new early learning centres.

About the Division

The Employee Safety, Wellbeing and Inclusion Division helps create safe, healthy, respectful, and inclusive working environments to help employees thrive and succeed. The Division's teams span from prevention to response and recovery, strategy, advice and support, and diversity and inclusion. The Division adopts a holistic approach to supporting our workforce's health, safety and wellbeing across schools and central and regional offices. This includes Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) and Workers' Compensation policy advice and support for both physical and mental health and wellbeing, diversity, and inclusion initiatives.

The objectives of the Division are to:

• promote positive wellbeing in working environments.
• prevent known and expected risks to health, safety, and wellbeing.
• respond and manage potential issues as they emerge and prevent injuries.
• support employees to recover from injury and illness and return to work.
• promote respectful and inclusive workplaces that uphold equal opportunity and prevent discrimination, bullying, harassment, and sexual harassment.
• promote human rights and workforce diversity and inclusion

About the Role

The Senior Workers' Compensation Eligibility Advisor plays a key role in supporting department workplaces to adopt best-practice early claims management. This includes gathering and assessing relevant documentation to enable sound and sustainable claim entitlement decisions for department workers' compensation claims. The role also provides general workers' compensation advice to Return to Work Coordinators, promoting safe and sustainable return-to-work outcomes.

Success in this position requires strong stakeholder management skills and the ability to identify policy risks arising from complex or protracted claims. The role will promote effective workers' compensation management practices through the provision of policy guidance, technical advice, claims management, and ongoing support.

Key stakeholders may include Gallagher Bassett (the Department's WorkCover Agent), the Victorian WorkCover Authority, the Workplace Injury Commission, WorkSafe panel legal firms, unions, and other relevant parties.

In addition, the role will contribute to the ongoing development and delivery of training programs that enhance workers' compensation policies and practices. This includes initiatives aimed at improving employee health outcomes, strengthening injury prevention, fostering early dispute resolution, and supporting the timely return of injured employees to work.

We are seeking candidates who demonstrate innovation, energy, and the experience to drive positive change within the department's context. Ideally, applicants will possess:

• Strong people and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively on initiatives to improve outcomes
• Excellent verbal and written communication, case management, and organisational skills
• The ability to identify risks, navigate complex issues, and provide informed advice and support
• Expert knowledge of workers' compensation legislation, obligations, and best-practice claims management
• Proven experience providing high-level expertise in resolving complex issues within a specialised support function
• The ability to drive team performance and achieve key performance indicators (KPIs)

This role requires strong leadership and accountability. The successful candidate will model public sector values, uphold performance standards, and support team success by identifying challenges and implementing effective solutions.

Attributes

The required capabilities for the role are set out in the position description (see attachment).

Qualifications and Experience

Relevant experience and tertiary qualifications in in workers compensation disputes is desirable.

How to Apply

Applications should include:

• a resume (no more than 2-pages); and
• a cover letter that responds to each of the Key Selection Criteria (no more than 2-pages).

Further Information

For more details regarding this position please see attached position description for the capabilities to address in application.

The department values diversity and inclusion in all forms - gender, religion, ethnicity, LGBTIQ+, disability and neurodiversity. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. For more information about our work, working for the Department, diversity and inclusion, and our employment conditions visit the Department website and our Diversity and Inclusion page

Applicants requiring adjustments can contact the nominated contact person.

Information about the Department of Education's operations and employment conditions can be located at

For further information pertaining to the role, please contact Tom Evans via or .

Preferred applicants may be required to complete a police check and may be subject to other pre-employment checks. Information provided to the Department of Education will be treated in the strictest confidence.

Please let us know via phone or email if you require any adjustments to ensure your full participation in the recruitment process or if you need the ad or any attachments in an accessible format (e.g large print) due to any viewing difficulties or other accessibility requirements.

Applications close 11:59pm on 27/11/2025