Support workers in child safety have made their voices loud and clear: no more empty promises. Immediate action is needed to fix chronic underfunding, understaffing, poor working conditions and low pay.
Photo: Child safety support workers stop work action - 1 May 2024
As frontline workers in child safety services, support workers make sure children and young people stay connected with their families, go to appointments, and have a stable life.
Support workers do their jobs because they care about their communities and want to help children and young people. Yet, with wages barely above minimum and constant staffing crises, experienced and dedicated workers are forced to consider leaving a job they love.
The government has failed to recognise these workers for years, and has been promising for this to change for the last six months, but broken promise after broken promise has meant that workers haven’t seen a single change.
Every day without action is another day closer to a collapse of the service altogether. If the government continues to ignore this broken system that puts vulnerable children at risk, workers will ramp up their fight for change.
Photo: Child safety support workers stop work action - 1 May 2024
Photo: Child safety support workers stop work action - 1 May 2024