My younger brother has ADHD, intellectual disability and Autism. He has worked at Activ since he was 17 years old. He has been working at Activ for the last 16 years. 

Activ's CEO has decided to close the supported employment section of Activ in WA because he is claiming there is not enough funding to remain open. 

750 people with disabilities are losing their jobs due to Activ’s CEO claiming they have no NDIS funding to continue providing the employees with employment. 90 office and supervisory staff are losing their jobs. The parents, families and carers of the 750 people are unsure of the future for their children and client’s. Most of these parents and carers may now be looking at unemployment themselves as they have no one to care for their children while they are at work. Activ was accommodating there children so they could work and their children could obtain valuable skills. The closure of Activ industries has had a huge ripple effect which the government and CEOs seem to be un aware of or they simply do not care. 

Activ is a safe space for our people to work, make friendships and obtain a sense of belonging. All of this will be ripped away from them within a few months. Activ is the parents and carers safe place for their people, so they themselves can stay sane and continue with their lives. 

There are minimal supported employee providers throughout WA so the bulk of these 750 people will now be facing unemployment or forced retirement. 

The majority of Activ’s 750 supported employees do not have the capacity or means to obtain mainstream employment. Activ is their safe space and has been for a very long time. This closure is going to cause a ripple effect. It is going to cause staff shortages in group homes (some of which are already struggling under Covid), parents and carers are going to have mental health problems caused by being unable to meet the care demands of their children whilst still working. 

In a meeting I attended a supported employee said, “I will need to retire when you close down as I am a danger to myself and others in different employment places.” “I am safe at Activ but now I will be forced to retire and sit around at home trying not to be a danger, Activ keeps me occupied so I am not a threat to myself or others”. A parent stated, “I will probably have to leave my job now to look after my child and then how am I meant to provide for them and myself.” Another parent said, “we are all going to lose our sanity, as Activ was a valuable break for me and my child”.

In this meeting an employee of Activ’s head office said she could not guarantee places for the 750 people who will be facing unemployment, but they will be trying their hardest. Activ has 73 positions in their contracted employment divisions which some of the 750 supported employees will be able to fill (if they have the capacity) but what happens to the other 677 supported employees? They will be left to dwindle in their group homes and homes and will lose their quality of life. Activ is acting is as though the supported employee’s livelihood and quality of life doesn’t matter. 

Activ is showing blatant disregard and lack of empathy at how badly this closure is going to affect the employee’s and their families/carers. 

Other community support programs run by different organizations are already at capacity and are having their own issues due to Covid. Has the government completely forgotten about all the people living with a disability in Australia?

Everybody in the room at this meeting is in the grips of despair and uncertainty as we now have no options for a viable semi-independent future for our people. Our 750 people and their loved ones are going to suffer a quality of life as a result of this closure.

I beg you to please sign this petition so we can try and fight for Activ to stay open, so our people have a safe, happy future ahead of them.