Thursday, February 12, 2009

Wanted by D'oH: Strong minded social workers prepared to work for $23ph

Any takers for this lucrative career opportunity with D'oH?

Any "social workers" prepared to work for $23 an hour?

What does "strong minded" mean exactly?

Does that $23 include a "strong-mindedness" bonus to explain the largesse

Don't forget that $23 doesn't include sick pay or holiday pay

DH's learning disabled child's first menial job pays $21 an hour!

With this kind of offer, no wonder all the you beaut things dreamed up in head office never get implemented down at the branch offices.

Dept of Housing - Client Services Officer - Northern Shores

Department of Housing requires customer service rep for their office in the Northern Shores $23

Our client requires a strong minded and experienced customer service representative preferably with a background in social work or community care to assist with managing a portfolio of clients. Your role will be to manage your portfolio of clients while under the guide and with support from your team leader to ensure you provide high level customer service while juggling a large workload of differing priorities.

You will work in small, friendly and supportive team and where your days will be varied with tasks such as Counter Service, Office Administration and Client Visits. While the role is a temporary position there is a lot of potential to possibly advance your career within the department.

Located close to Buses. Paying $23 P/H your duties will include but won't be limited to:

  • Managing a portfolio of clients and looking after their special needs
  • Counter customer service
  • Client visits
  • General Administration

Must have:


  • Previous experience in a customer service background
  • Social Work or Case Work desirable
  • Excellent open and friendly communication skills both verbal and written
  • Proven conflict resolution skills
  • Ability to understand and interpret policy
  • A current driver's license a must
  • Ability to work well under pressure as well as in a team environment
  • Understanding of confidentiality and a strong work ethic

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yes, I would think $23 p.h. is definitely below par for someone with SW experience - though it's a bit hard to tell unless you're familiar with all the relevant Classes & Years, as per the Award rates for the Community sector which are accessible on the net, at least for Victoria. I get $25.58p.h. for my casual work in the welfare sector.

In Victoria Office of Housing staff are known to be paid at the lowest rate on the State Public Service Award. Yet their caseloads are just as described in the ad you've reprinted from NSW. When I talked to the CPSU official responsible for public housing staff a couple of years ago he said that their workloads were basically unmanageable and that he was worried about the psycho-emotional health of some of his OH staff.

This week an OH worker told me that all the rent rebate reviews which were due to be processed by Nov 23, '08 were still underway (the new rebate system has everyone's rent fixed for an identical 6 month period, so they all have the same processing date).

But ultimately pay and conditions should be lobbied on by the CPSU. Could it be that the union's ties to Labor are impeding their capacity to be a robust union? I wonder how these examples from NSW & Vic compare to other states?

There's no doubt that public tenants would benefit from having better paid & qualified staff.

Anonymous said...

No doubt about it, Anonymous... The problem is that renting state owned housing has shifted from an alternative to home ownership to an option of last resort - or a welfare option, if you will. But the office is still staffed by bureaucrats with little to no compassion for the increasing daily struggles of their clients. Perhaps this rate of pay is an indication of their coming to terms - if the office is staffed by the working poor, then perhaps they'll more readily identify with their clients, so we can all start to get along?

DH said...

Despite her satirical bent, it is not DH's experience that Housing NSW are unsympthetic. It's more a question of the staff at the coalface being overworked and underpaid. That itself can be more likely laid at the feet of the Labor party than the bureaucrats who must do their bidding.

Anonymous said...

Fair enough, D.H. I guess I should declare myself as a Tenants' Advocate. My dealings with Housing staff tend to be at the more adversarial end of the spectrum... Perhaps this clouds my image of the place? That said, I suppose it depends whether you're dealing with the coalface or the engine room, and I very much doubt that members of the legal services team are handing their souls over to the dark side for a paltry $23 an hour...

DH said...

Quite agree with you N.C.

Anonymous said...

Hey DS, knowing how much you love Centrelink, but with the priviso that the Centreflunk site is fairly culturally offensive, nevertheless you might get a laugh out of this link http://www.centreflunk.com/forum/index.php/topic,1791.0.html. Some unemployed genius has been 'googlehacking' the emails of Centrelink staff! Have no idea what that is, i can only imagine how it's done. Read the thread and make up yr own mind.

It's a pity that people can't organise off the Centreflunk site, that way the unemployed might actually muster some collective power - but that's technology for you, it's become the universal meeting place.

DH said...

DH is aware of the Centreflunk site, and finds it infantile and pathetic. The previous post will shortly be removed, when its sender has had a chance to read it.