The Green Party is welcoming today’s announcement that pay equity will be extended to more social workers, and urges the Government to work with unions to get this sorted as quickly as possible.

“Our community social workers play a huge role holding communities together, especially over the last two years. They do incredibly high stakes jobs that rely on skill and judgement, and they need to be paid properly,” says the Green Party’s workplace relations and safety spokesperson, Jan Logie.

“There is a huge pay disparity between public sector and community social workers. Many community social workers have the same qualifications, training and responsibilities as those who work in the public sector, but are paid much less.

“This means many people are leaving community based providers to take up better paying jobs, leaving community providers without adequate staff numbers.

“Pay equity is about ensuring that people who do such important work for our communities are paid what they deserve.

“Peel back the layers of the cost of living crisis and what we actually have is an inequality crisis. Wages have not kept up with inflation and people have to work longer in order to make ends meet.

“People struggling will need to see these changes ASAP to ensure they have enough to support their families, pay the bills, and put a roof over their heads.

“We look forward to this being rolled out quickly,” says Jan Logie.

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