PSA MEDIA RELEASE

July 25, 2007

For Immediate Use

Improving Pay And Conditions For Support Workers Key To Improving Lives Of
Disabled

"If we're serious about improving the lives of disabled New Zealanders, we
will improve the pay and working conditions of the community support workers
who the disabled rely on to live full and happy lives," says PSA (Public
Service Association) National Secretary, Richard Wagstaff.

The PSA has 2500 members supporting disabled people living in community houses and in their own homes. Today the union is presenting a submission to parliament's social services select committee, which is looking at how the
quality of care for the disabled can be improved.

"More than 100,000 disabled New Zealanders rely on community support workers
every day for their medical support, meals, personal care, such as bathing
and dressing, housework and to live as part of the community," says Richard
Wagstaff. "The quality of life the disabled are able to enjoy depends on the
support they receive from their support workers."

"Community support workers are multi skilled and yet they're paid as little
as $11.75 an hour, just 50 cents above the minimum adult wage," says Richard
Wagstaff. "They struggle to live on these low pay rates and many work 100 to
110 hours a fortnight, just to make ends meet."

"One support worker told the union that she'd worked 150 hours in a fortnight because there was no one to relieve her at the end of a her shift."

Many of the workers supporting disabled adults living in community houses
are required to spend 24 hours in a row at work. They do a regular eight
hour shift from 3pm until 11pm. Then another eight hour shift, during which
they sleep in the community house, but are required to get up when the
residents need help. Then at 7am they get up and work a further eight hour
shift until 3pm.

"Because of staff shortages, due to the low pay and poor working conditions,
some support workers are having to do two sleepovers in a row," says Richard
Wagstaff. "This means doing six eight hour shifts in a row and spending 48
hours at work without going home."

The PSA and the Service and Food Workers Union (SFWU) are launching a legal
challenge to these sleepover shifts because community support workers are
being paid half the minimum adult wage for the eight hours between 11pm and
7am. Some are paid is little as $4.37 an hour, while the top rate is just
$5.62 an hour, exactly half the adult minimum wage of $11.25 an hour.

"These workers are at work and on call during 'sleepovers' shifts and are being paid less than $5 an hour," says Richard Wagstaff. "That's unacceptable and the PSA and SFWU are alleging that this breaches the Minimum Wage Act."

The low pay, poor working conditions and a lack of adequate training makes it very hard for the disability sector to recruit and retain staff. Turnover among staff caring for disabled in community house is 29%, while its 39% for
workers who support disabled people living in their own homes.

"It's clear that the disability sector is underfunded and that not enough of
the money, it receives from the government, is getting through to the
workers on the front line,'' says Richard Wagstaff. "This makes it extremely
hard for these workers to provide the level of support that disabled New
Zealanders need to be able to lead decent lives."

"Our message to the select committee is a simple one,'' says Richard Wagstaff. "The single most effective thing we can do to improve the quality
of life for the disabled is to improve the pay and working conditions for
the workers who spend 24 hours a day seven days a week enabling the disabled
to live a normal life in the community."

ends

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