The Workers' Compensation and Injury Management Act 1981 ("the Act") provides specific guidance in regards to what criteria must be met in order to be eligible to apply for a retraining program. Section 158(1) of the Act stipulates the following eligibility criteria:
- the worker has participated in a return to work program established under section 155C(1) but has not been able to return to work;
- the worker has a capacity for retraining and is a person for whom a specialised retraining program is a viable option;
- formal vocational training or study through a technical or tertiary training course appears to be the only course of action that will enable the worker to return to work;
- it is reasonable to expect that a specialised retraining program will provide the worker with the qualification or skills necessary to return to work, having regard to the labour market, the worker’s existing qualifications and work experience; and
- such other criteria as may be prescribed in the regulations for the purposes of this definition.