Download the Terms and Conditions

The Prime Minister’s National Veteran Employment Awards are administered by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA).

To be eligible to submit a nomination for an Award, or to receive an Award in one of the Prime Minister’s National Veteran Employment Awards (the Awards) categories, applicants must agree to the following terms and conditions. 

Where applicable, they must also meet the specified eligibility requirements.

Awards Categories

Nominations are accepted for the following 2025 Prime Minister’s National Veteran Employment Awards categories:

Individual Award Categories

  • Veteran Employee of the Year
  • Partner Employee of the Year
  • Veteran and/or Partner Entrepreneur of the Year

Organisation Award Categories

  • Small Employer of the Year
  • Medium Employer of the Year
  • Large Employer of the Year
  • Best Regional Veteran Employment Initiative
  • Best Veteran Employment Commitment Initiative 

Individual, Organisation or collaboration 

  • Champion of Veteran Employment

Definitions

For the purpose of these terms and conditions, the following definitions apply:

  1. A Collaboration is:
    1. two or more individuals, organisations or groups working together to achieve a task or common goal.
  2. An Entrepreneur is:
    1. An Australian citizen or permanent resident of Australia
    2. 18 years of age or over
    3. served at least one day in the Australian Defence Force or is serving in the Australian Defence force, or be the partner (spouse or de-facto) of a serving or former serving Australian Defence Force member (who has served at least one day in the Australian Defence force)
    4. the owner of a business (either solely or jointly) that:
      1. is registered and based in Australia
      2. holds an Australian Business Number
      3. is owned by:
        1. a person who identifies as a veteran under DVA’s broad definition as anyone who is, or has served, at least one day, full-time service in the Australian Defence Force; or
        2. the partner (spouse or de-facto) of a serving or former Australian Defence Force member (who has served at least one day in the Australian Defence Force)
  3. Nomination Platform:
    1. The nomination platform for the 2025 Awards is EventsAir, an event management platform.
    2. Nominators will be required to create an account as part of the nomination process.
    3. Nomination documentation will only be shared with event organisers and those involved in the judging process.
  4. A Nominator is:
    1. the individual, organisation or collaboration nominating for the award or another individual.
  5. A Partner is:
    1. An Australian citizen or permanent resident of Australia
    2. 18-years of age or over
    3. the partner (spouse or de-facto) of a serving or former serving Australian Defence Force member (who has served at least one day in the Australian Defence Force)
    4. employed by an employer other than the Australian Defence Force (paid or unpaid)
  6. Private Sector Organisation is a business that:
    1. is registered in Australia
    2. has been operating in Australia for at least 12 months on the closing date of nominations
    3. has an Australian Business Number that has been active for at least 12 months on the closing date of nominations.
  7. Public Sector Organisation includes:
    1. organisations registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission; or
    2. State/Territory or Commonwealth agencies, statutory and local government authorities; or
    3. higher education institutions recognised under the Higher Education Support Act 2003.
  8. Referee form
    1. Is a one-page document to support the nomination, to be completed by a secondary person to the nominator.
    2. This is to verify/support nomination claims and will be reviewed by the awards judges.
  9. Supporting Documentation
    1. Refers to the up to 2 attachments nominators can submit to support their nomination claims.
    2. These documents must be in PDF format and no more than 2 pages each.
    3. These will be reviewed by the awards judges
    4. Supporting documentation may include, but is not limited to:
      1. Work examples
      2. Data or excerpts from reports
      3. Executive, colleague or customer testimonials
      4. Other awards received by the nominee
  10. A Veteran is/has:
    1. An Australian citizen or permanent resident of Australia
    2. 18-years of age or over
    3. Served at least one day, full-time service in the Australian Defence Force
    4. Employed by an employer other than the Australian Defence Force (paid or unpaid)

Eligibility Requirements

To be considered for an award, the individual or organisation must meet all eligibility requirements for each category as provided below.

  1. Small Employer of the Year
    1. open to private or public sector organisations (as defined in this Terms of Reference)
    2. must have fewer than 20 employees
  2. Medium Employer of the Year
    1. open to private or public sector organisations (as defined in this Terms of Reference)
    2. must have between 20-200 employees
  3. Large Employer of the Year
    1. open to private or public sector organisations (as defined in this Terms of Reference)
    2. must have more than 200 employees
  4. Best Regional Veteran Employment Initiative
    1. open to public and private sector organisations or a collaboration (as defined in this Terms of Reference)
    2. whose employment initiative principally benefits an area located outside of Australia’s major cities as classified by the Australian Bureau of Statistics Australian Statistical Geography Standard.
  5. Best Veteran Employment Commitment Initiative
    1. open to public and private sector organisations (as defined in this Terms of Reference)
    2. that has joined the Veteran Employment Commitment (VEC) prior to 17 June 2025 (nomination open date).
  6. Veteran Employee of the Year
    To be eligible for this award, the applicant must be/have:
    1. an Australian citizen or permanent resident of Australia
    2. 18-years of age or over
    3. served at least one day, full-time service in the Australian Defence Force
    4. employed (paid or unpaid)
  7. Partner Employee of the Year
    To be eligible for this award, the applicant must be:
    1. an Australian citizen or permanent resident of Australia
    2. 18-years of age or over
    3. the partner (spouse or de-facto) of a serving or former serving Australian Defence Force member (who has served at least one day, full-time service in the Australian Defence Force)
    4. employed (paid or unpaid)
  8. Veteran and/or Partner Entrepreneur of the Year
    To be eligible for this award, the applicant must be/have:
    1. an Australian citizen or permanent resident of Australia
    2. 18-years of age or over
    3. served at least one day, full-time service in the Australian Defence Force, OR be the partner (spouse or de-facto) of a serving or former serving Australian Defence Force member (who has served at least one day full-time service)
    4. the owner of a business (either solely or jointly) that:
      1. is registered and based in Australia
      2. holds an Australian Business Number
      3. is owned by:
      • a person who identifies as a veteran under DVA’s broad definition as anyone who is, or has served, at least one day, full-time service in the Australian Defence Force; or
      • the partner (spouse or de-facto) of a serving or former Australian Defence Force member (who has served at least one day full-time service).
  9. Champion of Veteran Employment
    1. open to public and private sector organisations or collaboration.
    2. this is a ‘People’s Choice Award’ with voting undertaken by organisations recognised at Veteran Employer of Choice (VEoC) and Veteran Friendly Employer (VFE) levels within the Veteran Employment Commitment (VEC).

Applicants:

  1. can only nominate the same nominee once in each category
  2. must ensure that nominees meet the eligibility requirements
  3. must advise the nominee that they have been nominated
  4. must seek the nominee's agreement that, if they are selected as a finalist:
    1. they will take all reasonable steps to make themselves available to attend an interview with the judging panel(s)*
      * applicable only for the Veteran Employee of the Year, Partner Employee of the Year and the Veteran and/or Partner Entrepreneur of the Year categories
    2. they or their nominated representative will take all reasonable steps to make themselves available for the event held to present the Awards
    3. they may be required to actively participate in presentations, media interviews and other Award related promotional activities
    4. consent to use of photographs and/or video images in promotional material and products developed for the Veteran Employment Program
  5. acknowledge that DVA and/or the judging panel(s) may request additional information or clarification in support of a nomination and, if so requested, such information or clarification must be provided within a specified timeframe
  6. acknowledge that individual feedback regarding unsuccessful nominations will not be provided
  7. acknowledge that if shortlisted for consideration as a finalist, a limited integrity check may be undertaken.  This will comprise of a review of publicly available information and where relevant, identification by the Fair Work Ombudsman of any adverse findings.

 

Applications

  1. applications are open from 9:00 am (AEST) Thursday, 19 June 2025 until 
    5:00 pm (AEST) Friday, 25 July 2025.
  2. applications must
    1. be submitted by 5:00 pm AEST on Friday, 25 July 2025
    2. be submitted online, with all supporting evidence
    3. meet the specific eligibility requirements for the relevant award category
    4. address the relevant award category nomination criteria, otherwise the nomination will not be considered
    5. be factually correct
    6. not exceed the relevant word limits, file size specifications as listed in the nomination form and Awards website. Word limits for each criterion will be reflected on the nomination form.
  3. All applicants agree that:
    1. any potential or actual conflict of interest must be declared, including, but not limited to, the existence and nature of any relationship that the organisation and/or the individual submitting the nomination may have with:
      1. the Prime Minister and his staff
      2. any staff of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
      3. the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and Minister for Defence Personnel, 
        and his staff
      4. any staff of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs
      5. any member of the Veterans' Employment Advisory Committee
      6. any company sponsoring the Awards
      7. any judge involved in the Awards
    2. the judging panel(s) reserve the right to move nominations into alternate categories where appropriate
    3. the judging panel(s) reserve the right to not select finalists and/or allocate an award in a particular category where, in its opinion, there are no nominations of sufficient merit. In such cases applicants will be advised accordingly
    4. the decisions of the judging panel(s) are final, and no correspondence will be entered into
    5. in the event that a nominee that has won an award category but has not complied with the terms and conditions of the Prime Minister’s National Veterans’ Employment Awards, the judging panel(s) may decide that:
      1. the nominee shall not be entitled to the relevant award;
      2. the relevant award may be provided to another nominee; and/or
      3. the relevant award may not be allocated

    6. in the event that:

      1.  an applicant or nominee is involved in, or suspected to be involved in, conduct or activity (including of a personal or business nature) that is illegal, fraudulent or causes harm, or
      2. the judging panel(s) are of the view that the consideration or granting of an award to the applicant or nominee has the potential to cause harm or reputational damage, to the Australian Government, the judging panel(s), the Veterans’ Employment Advisory Committee on or Award sponsors, 

      a nomination may not be considered or an award received by a nominee may be withdrawn

    7. there will be no cash prizes or gift vouchers provided to Award winners
    8. in submitting the application, the applicant warrants that they own the material included in their application (including any supporting evidence) and agrees to provide a licence to the judging panel(s) and the Australian Government to use that information for the purposes of the Prime Minister’s National Veterans’ Employment Awards and the Veteran Employment Program
    9. in submitting the application, the applicant gives DVA permission to publish details of the nomination (such as but not limited to biographies and photographs), for the purposes of promoting the Prime Minister’s National Veterans’ Employment Awards and the Veteran Employment Program including publication on the Veteran Employment Program website, the DVA website, DVA social media channels and in other promotional materials and media
    10. if an applicant nominates an individual or another organisation for an award, the nominee (or their nominated representative if applicable) will be requested to provide DVA with permission to publish details of the nomination (such as but not limited to biographies and photographs), for the purpose of promoting the Awards, and the Veteran Employment Program including publication on the Veteran Employment Program website, the DVA website, DVA social media channels and in other promotional materials and media.

Privacy

  1. DVA is bound by the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and manages personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles. The Privacy Act 1988 regulates the collection, storage, use, disclosure and disposal of personal information by Commonwealth agencies.
  2. The information provided on the Prime Minister’s National Veteran Employment Awards nomination form is collected by DVA for the purposes of the Awards and the Veteran Employment Program. The information may be disclosed to the judging panel(s) (and other contracted service providers), the Australian Government, and the Veteran Employment Advisory Committee.
  3. All information collected by DVA will be managed in accordance with the DVA Privacy Policy. The DVA Privacy Policy contains information about what personal information is collected, how and where the information is stored and why it is needed. It also explains how you can access or correct your personal information, how to make a complaint if you believe that your information has been mishandled and whether your information may be disclosed overseas. 

 

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