Welfare services curb on the cards

Press, 11 September 1987, Page 5

Welfare services curb on the cards

The Social Welfare Department’s Canterbury area offices may restrict their services to the public from September 24, as a result of an industrial dispute.

The dispute has hampered the department’s services for seven weeks. The Public Service Association’s executive gave its approval on Wednesday to the staffs proposal to restrict the hours of public business to 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. As well, incoming telephone calls will be restricted to one every five minutes, and outward toll calls will* be banned.

However, both the director of the Christchurch Social Welfare Department, Mr Maurice Doocey, and the Canterbury area organiser of the P.S.A., Mr Philip Butler, hope that talks between the department’s management and staff on Monday can resolve the dispute before the action takes effect

"I think they (the talks) have every reason to come up with a positive outcome,” said Mr Butler.

“The Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Palmer, has already made it clear where he stands. There are to be no staff reductions without a downturn in work or removal of policy.”

Mr Butler said that the Christchurch and Rangiora offices needed 541 staff all told to deliver the services they were providing at present. The management was proposing to reduce numbers to 511. Replying to a concern expressed by the Christchurch Youth and Community Workers’ Interest Group, Mr Doocey said

the department would take all possible steps to minimise the effects on beneficiaries of the industrial action. “There is industrial action being taken with a ban on implementing any new or changed procedures so it is having minimal effects. It could escalate to serious effects, but if that is to happen we will consider all our options for what can be done,” Mr Doocey said. Clients telephoning the offices would probably be the main ones to suffer if the services to the public were restricted.