Taxpayer-Supported Charity Offers $100,000 Role to Support Palestinian Refugees in Sydney

‘The role further focused on supporting refugees, migrants and humanitarian entrants from Palestine,’ the position requires.

Protesters hold placards during a pro Palestine demonstration, in Sydney, Australia, on Dec. 7, 2023. AAP Image/Bianca De Marchi

A taxpayer-supported charity is offering more than $100,000 a year for a dedicated “Palestinian settlement and community development worker.”

CORE Community Services in Sydney advertised the position for an Arabic-speaking staff member responsible for “tailored settlement support for newly arrived Palestinian communities settling in and around Fairfield” in western Sydney.

The 12-month contract position is advertised at $102,000 to $105,000, which job site Seek lists at the higher end of the social worker payment scale.

“The role further focused on supporting refugees, migrants and humanitarian entrants from Palestine and requires the applicant to have a thorough understanding of the challenges affecting their settlement process and identify services available for to support them,” the job ad states.

“The successful candidate must be able to work with other cohorts including Israelis and Ukrainians residing in and around Fairfield Local Council.”

“Working in partnership with other diverse stakeholders, this role will build the community capacity, strengthen grassroot leadership and support local Palestinian organisations to become sustainable,” the position description reads.

Fairfield receives the highest number of new immigrants in the nation.

Questions were raised about the cost of the role, with conservative advocacy group Advance Australia posting on Facebook, “Why do we have to pay for this, exactly?”

In 2024, CORE Community Services received the federal Labor government’s Settlement Engagement and Transition Support contract, following a tender process.

Under the taxpayer-backed program, migrants and refugees receive support to improve social participation, and their economic and personal wellbeing.

According to the Refugee Council of Australia, refugee settlement support services were allocated an additional $120.9 million in funding in 2024 to be spread over a five-year period.

A spokesperson for CORE told The Epoch Times that services tailored to people of specific backgrounds provided a more inclusive and dignified approach to settlement.

“CORE’s work is grounded in the belief that tailored and culturally appropriate services help build trust and ensure individuals and families are empowered during their settlement journey,” they said.

CORE says it works with migrants from a range of backgrounds, including Ukrainian, Vietnamese, Afghan, Assyrian, Iraqi and Palestinian.

“In supporting our diverse community, CORE has Settlement and Community workers focused on both the broader community of refugees and migrants as well as specialist workers, more recently Afghan and Iraqi settlement and community development workers.”