Transcript of media conference with Robbie Moore, HACSU State Secretary, and John Britcliffe, Support Worker, New Town Rd, 1 May 2024.
Robbie Moore
We’re here today because child safety support workers have been ignored by this government, despite a commitment that was made over 12 months ago to reclassify these employees. These child safety support workers do vital work with young, vulnerable children are trying to reunite them with their families and provide them with other supports for children that are extremely vulnerable.
Their work is extremely underpaid. It’s even paid less than private sector people doing the same work, and they’re not being paid enough. This is a totally unacceptable situation where we have the state government stealing their own workers wages by not even honouring the commitment that they made 12 months ago.
Members have just resolved and just voted that they will escalate industrial action unless the state government honours the promise it made over 12 months ago and pays these workers appropriately. And this is just the start of the campaign if this government won’t listen.
Journalist – Elliott
What kind of escalated industrial action might occur?
Robbie Moore
Workers are working through what those bans will be. They will obviously focus on the government and not on the children that they support. People that sign up for this vital work, are supporting Tasmania’s most vulnerable children, are not going to put children at risk. But what they will do is call out a government that is underfunding them, that is underpaying them. And that is putting children at risk because of the shortages we have in support workers that is caused by the poor wages and conditions of these workers.
Journalist – Elliott
Given the Commission of Inquiry shed a light … [inaudible]
Robbie Moore
This is an outrageous situation. Our government rightfully had an inquiry into children and abuse. And then to see a situation where they ignore the people that are actually helping the most vulnerable children is totally inappropriate. It just shows how out of touch this government is, and why we are calling on the Premier to intervene in this situation, to make sure that the people supporting the most vulnerable children are being supported themselves,
Tasmanian Times
How does Tasmania compare to other states and territories for wages and conditions in this sector for these kinds of jobs?
Robbie Moore
These are the lowest paid child safety support workers in the country. It’s an absolutely unacceptable situation where we cannot even pay a fair wage to people who are supporting the most vulnerable Tasmanians. This is an indictment on this government and that is why we’re calling on the Premier to intervene.
Journalist – unidentified
We’ve seen the government promise a lot of things to make the health sector better. Is there an aspect of not believing them any more?
Robbie Moore
It’s hard to believe this government when they’re ignoring vital workers like child support workers. These workers are working with the most absolutely vulnerable children in our community. They’re going above and beyond every day. And they made a commitment over 12 months ago that they’ve failed to deliver. This government is so out of touch, we need to see intervention. That is why we are calling on the Premier to intervene.
Journalist – unidentified
What does intervening need to look like?
Robbie Moore
The reality is that the ministers that have been responsible in this portfolio have ignored this. And that is why we need the Premier to intervene in this situation. He is the head of the State Service and ultimately responsible for the employment conditions. To have employment conditions that are the lowest in the country,that are below the private sector, and that are putting Tasmanian kids at risk, cannot go on any longer.
John Britcliffe
John Britcliffe.
My name is John Britcliffe, I’m the union delegate for HACSU at the Department. And my colleagues and comrades are sick and tired of the delays that the government is currently holding us up for our pay rise. We’re only asking for a fair amount because of the work we do. We’re sick and tired of the stalling.
And we’d just like to say that irrespective of which major government is in, they’re both one and the same party and that’s the truth. No one is listening to us. We’re bitterly disappointed. As Robbie said, we work in a crisis-driven situation on a daily basis where we have to make decisions on the run with children in crisis and their families, and they’re also at their wits’ end.
Journalist – Elliott
How much of a pay rise were you expecting? And how much of an impact does not having that pay rise have on workers?
John Britcliffe
We’re hoping to move across to a band, which is already there, there’s an amount there. At the moment we’re the lowest paid workers in the entire country. The pay parity between the states, there’s a wide gap. We’re just asking for fairness, and to go onto a band, and it’s already there. So it should be easy, it’s not a difficult situation. We’ve obviously got a Treasurer who who can’t add up, because it just seems they’re so concerned about other matters, and they’re leaving us out and not acknowledging the important work we do on a daily basis.
Journalist – Elliott
Can you just expand on your work and why you do need better pay and conditions?
John Britcliffe
We’re working with children are in state care. Not only are the parents angry, but we need to be making decisions on the run. We’re not only working with people – young children that are at school, and what to do well at school – but we’re now also working with a number of situations with children in care with quite strong issues, complex issues, disabilities and so on. That’s the sort of work we’re doing on a daily basis.
Tasmanian Times
How does it make workers feel to see those children not getting the care and attention and rehabilitation services they need?
John Britcliffe
Again, we’re completely disappointed. We’re have to show compassion and empathy in our work not only towards the children, but their families. And the delays … they cannot attract workers to this industry if they pay them unfairly.
I saw the minister on the ABC News last just last week, waving a bit of paper trying to encourage people on the international stage to come to Tasmania and look at our wonderful state to see how good it is. But let’s face it, you cannot live on fresh air, you need fair pay. So they’re not going to encourage people if they’re not going to pay the right pay.
Journalist – Elliott
What’s keeping you in the job?
John Britcliffe
I find it very interesting and the people that we work with are nice people in a lot of situations. They’re ordinary people going about their daily lives, however they’re stymied. Reunifications are taking far too long. So we’re encouraging them to, along with the carers, to just go along with it. And hopefully, in the changes that will come, that they will be reunified with their families.
Journalist – Elliott
Do you see many workers leaving the workforce because of the poor conditions and [inaudible]?
John Britcliffe
Absolutely, indeed too many leaving, far too many, because of the workloads that they have. And once again, it comes back to the pay. It’s so difficult, the travelling to work costs, the hidden, latent things behind the scenes for all the workers, and the implications of getting to work, and bills, and so on. So they leave and go to NGOs where they’re paid much better, or interstate. As I keep going back to the point of, irrespective of what government is, the truth is that Labor and Liberal are one and the same party now. They’re not listening, they’ve got such disdain for the workers they’ve forgotten about us.
Journalist – unidentified
And just on that, John, if you were to sit down with the Premier, what would you say to him?
John Britcliffe
I’d say to him, ‘come out with us for a few days, come to the front line, and have a look at actually what we do’. They’ve lost … they don’t know actually what we do at work. Come with us for a few days and listen to some of the children and the families and see the difficult situations that we sometimes find ourselves in making decisions on the run.
And I’d just like to say that my my colleagues and comrades need a change because we don’t want to lose any more workers. So they need to come to the table and do the fair thing of just paying us a fair wage. Thank you.
