Our Story

How It All Began

The Beginning

1994

1994 Tursa Employment & Training was founded in Lismore, NSW by Ron Rathborne as a not-for-profit organisation for the express purpose of addressing the needs of unemployed workers to achieve sustainable employment and alleviating any disadvantage suffered by unemployed persons in that pursuit. The founder was himself a mature-aged, long-term unemployed person born and raised in the region with a 15-year career background as a National Trade Union Secretary based in Sydney before returning to the region. The first TURSA Committee of Management was composed of local persons committed to aiding those unemployed especially through the provision and delivery of formally accredited training.

The Beginning

1995

In 1995 the first contract was granted to TURSA under the New Work Opportunities Programme, commencing in Lismore, then a month later in Ballina and within months extended throughout the Northern Rivers. Mobile deployed field staff operated across the Northern Rivers footprint supported by the Head Office at Lismore. Rapid expansion to offices at Ballina followed by Grafton and Tweed Heads ensured we were able to provide increased services across the entire region. In August 1995, Debbie Fry joined the organisation with a 12 year background in working within the employment sector across regional Australia including Northern Rivers of NSW with a commitment to driving better linkages for disadvantaged Australians. This ongoing passion continues to support an independent Board of Directors and an experienced Chief Officers Group.

1996 - 1997

From 1996 and into 1997 New Apprenticeship Centres, Youth Programmes and Work for the Dole were included into the services delivered by TURSA. New sites opened at Casino, Byron Bay and Murwillumbah. The same year saw the approval of TURSA as a Registered Training Organisation (RTO: 90325) and the subsequent awarding of key NSW training contracts.

96-97

1998 - 2000

In 1998 and for the next two years, TURSA was contracted to deliver the Flex 1 programme, sourcing job vacancies and engaging with other employment service providers to recruit labour across all industry sectors in the Northern Rivers - more than 7,000 places over the contract period - a challenging but successful programme.

Further contracts were awarded to the RTO including the training and supporting of Northern Rivers Business to migrate and integrate MYOB and QuickBooks into their operations. Adult participants obtained training to achieve their International Computer Driving License (ICDL) as one of the first steps by the government to support the new digital age and use of technology emerging in the workplace.

1998-2000

2003-2009

2003 saw continued expansion into the Gold Coast with new offices initially at Southport and shortly afterwards Nerang, Coolangatta, and Kingscliff. By 2007, additional sites at Coffs Harbour, Bellingen, Woolgoolga and Yamba expanded theTURSA footprint.

2003-2009

2009-2015

In 2009, the Australian Government Job Network programme was replaced by Job Services Australia which continued through to 2015. TURSA's footprint continued to grow with additional locations opened at Oxenford, Helensvale, Palm Beach, Robina, Mermaid Beach and Nambucca Heads.

2009-2015

2015

From 2015, jobactive became the new programme for Employment Services from the Australian Government. Contracts awarded to TURSA under the new jobactive programme saw a significant increase in business through the Brisbane corridor to the Sunshine Coast and an expansion in the Mid North Coast of NSW, resulting in the opening of an additional 30 sites to support the increase in business.

2015

2018

In 2018, TURSA established an additional site at North Lakes to meet the needs of this emerging growth corridor in the northern suburbs of Brisbane. Later that year TURSA successfully secured a competitive license under the revised Disability Employment Services-Employment Support Services (DES-ESS) across 16 contracted Employment Service Areas which saw the further expansion of services in their 56 current sites, with additional locations added at Toowoomba and Gatton in Queensland.

2018

2022

In 2022, TURSA transitioned from jobactive to the Workforce Australia programme across the New South Wales footprint in the North Coast and Mid North Coast, NSW. The Transition to Work Program also commenced at Beenleigh, Capalaba and Woodridge in Queensland on the 4th of July 2022.

2022

2025

In November 2025, TURSA  transitioned from Disability Employment Services (DES) to the Inclusive Employment Australia (IEA) programme across the Manning area in NSW, as well as the Gold Coast, North Brisbane and Sunshine Coast areas in QLD.

TURSA also celebrated 30 years of serving local communities. To celebrate this milestone, the TURSA 30 Year Community Grants program was launched to support small, not-for-profit organisation expand their impact in local community.

2026

TURSA  continues to provide a wide range of employment services, including Workforce Australia, Transition to Work and Inclusive Employment Australia, which includes programs specifically for youth, indigenous participants, ex-offenders and people with disability. They offer practical training and assistance, along with post-placement support. TURSA  remains dedicated to helping disadvantaged individuals secure long-term, sustainable employment through their various programs and community partnerships, ensuring participants remain at the heart of their efforts.

Into the Future

The future is looking bright, built on a solid foundation of experience. For over 30 years, TURSA  has worked in the community, helping people achieve meaningful employment, assisting local communities with sponsorships and supporting businesses with wage subsidies and personalised services.

TURSA’s  range of support services include, Workforce Australia, Transition to Work (TtW), Inclusive Employment Australia and quality training through our Registered Training Organisation.

Our experienced team is dedicated to assisting participants and businesses succeed and thrive with flexible, face-to-face personal attention.

We are excited about the possibilities and opportunities as we look towards the future

We remain committed to you, our participants, local employers and community partners

We look forward to supporting you in achieving your future employment goals

Thank you for choosing TURSA.