What does being an independent support worker mean? How can I start my own small business on Mable? How will I find clients? What kind of support services can I offer as a support worker on Mable? What are agreements? How do I set my support worker pay rates?
As an independent support worker on Mable, you might have all these questions — and more! That’s why we have compiled this support worker’s guide to support you on your professional journey.
Within this guide, you will find answers to all your questions and helpful guidelines on how to run (and scale up!) your small business on Mable.
Transitioning to self-employment: A guide
When you are approved as an independent support worker on Mable, you become a self-employed sole trader and can build your business on your terms that sustains you and supports your goals in life.
Support workers on Mable enjoy the many benefits of self-employment. These include choosing your own hours, rates of pay and the clients you work with.
Becoming an independent support worker on Mable means:
- You have the freedom and flexibility to book with clients you want and work the hours you want
- You can choose how much you want to be paid for your support services
- You can decide what support services you want to provide
- You’re self-employed through your small business — not an employee — and so your rates should include an amount to cover you for when you are sick, go on holidays, or if you work on public holidays
- You are responsible for managing your finances, including tax and super.
Mable supports you every step of the way on this journey to building your small business. We’re here to support you to manage your taxes, provide safeguards for a safe support experience, or empower you to upskill through the Mable Learning Hub, Mable helps you get started, so you can focus on what matters to you — helping those in the community and becoming a successful independent support worker.
What support services can you offer through Mable?
Support workers on Mable offer a variety of support services. The services you can offer depend on your qualifications and experience. Some types of support do not require formal tertiary qualifications, but do require skills.
Domestic assistance and social support do not require any formal qualifications. Examples of tasks you might perform as a domestic assistant include cleaning, gardening and doing laundry. Social support tasks include taking your client shopping, to the movies or to medical appointments.
Personal care is another service offered by support workers on Mable and can include tasks such as showering, dressing and manual transfers. Relevant qualifications and/or experience are required to undertake personal care duties.
Other support services offered on Mable include occupational therapy, physiotherapy, nursing services, speech pathology and psychology. All of these require qualifications and membership with specific organisations.
Learn more about the types of support you can offer through Mable. You can specify these in your Mable support worker profile.
Meet and greet with a client: what you need to know
The first meet and greet with a client is all about getting to know each other and each other’s expectations of the job. During this meeting, ask the client for the details involved in each task to ensure you are qualified and physically able to undertake them. This is important for the safety of both you and your client. During the meeting, don’t hesitate to communicate what you can and can’t do, as this is the perfect moment for you both to assess if you are the right fit for the job.
Here are some tips to help you prepare for this meeting, as well as common questions that can crop up during a meet and greet. If you would prefer, you can bring your relevant qualifications, police check and other documents in a folder to your meet and greet so your potential client can look at them or update your profile with this information so the client is able to view and assess their requirements and needs, to determine if you are a good fit for them.
Read more about how to prepare for a meet and greet, and how to maximise your chances of booking a client.
If your meet and greet has been successful and you have decided to book with the client, the next step is to get the agreement in place. The agreement is a document that sets out all the details and terms of the support service to be provided.
Everything you need to know about agreements
Agreements are an important part of the process of establishing a support service with a client. When you and a client decide to work together, you formalise your discussions within your Mable agreement about the nature of the work you will undertake, the hours you will work, and your rates, among other things.
Because each session may be different, your agreement is important as it sets out the basis of your engagement with your client – with all of the details you’ve discussed and agreed upon together.
Importantly, every hour of support invoiced via Mable comes with insurances arranged on behalf of you as an independent worker. Therefore, to protect yourself as well as your client, it’s vital to have an agreement in place that sets out all the terms of the support arrangement.
When things change such as your rate or the nature of the service you are providing for a client, you can change your agreement to update it with the relevant information. Reviewing agreements periodically, for example every six months, can be a good idea to ensure everything you are currently doing for a client is included in the agreement.
In order to ensure smooth, hassle-free payments and protection for yourself and your client, make sure your agreement is clearly defined, as detailed as possible, signed and accepted by the client.
Learn more about what to write in an agreement.
How do payments work on Mable?
Getting paid on Mable is fairly straightforward. Make sure, as mentioned above, that your agreement is finalised before you start your support session, to ensure the payment process is smooth.
There are five key steps in a payment process:
- After the support session is complete, submit your support hours
- The client or representative will approve your support hours
- Mable invoices the person or organisation responsible for the client’s funding source
- The person or organisation will then pay the invoice
- Mable sends your payment – minus our platform fee – to your nominated bank account.
Mable takes care of sending the invoices to clients and following up on payment. We are committed to supporting your business. If you have any questions relating to payments, please contact us.
Build your business as an independent support worker on Mable
If you’re looking to find more work, connect with more clients, upskill or scale up your business, there are various ways to do so through Mable.
One such way is to use Mable Last Minute. It is a great way to find new clients and assist them at short notice. One session may turn into regular bookings or it may be an opportunity to receive a review, which can lead to a better search ranking and more jobs. Another way is to upskill with the Mable Learning Hub, through which you can access more than 170 free, self-directed training courses by reputable organisations.
By following these simple tips, you can maximise your chances of establishing a successful support worker business on Mable.
Your most frequently asked questions
Starting out as a self-employed support worker is a new working world and there are bound to be questions! With that in mind, we have compiled some of our most frequently asked questions from independent support workers.
You can also explore our How to become an independent support worker on Mable hub for more information on what you can earn on Mable, setting up your Mable profile, and more.
If you have just been approved as a support worker on Mable, explore this comprehensive guide to finding jobs, setting your support worker rates and more.
In addition to these, the Help Centre provides practical guidance to assist you with platform related topics and questions you may have on your journey to becoming a successful independent support worker on Mable.
