Changing face of Work and Income
A remodelling of Work and Income offices is hoped to end the ‘‘walk of shame’’ that welfare clients face.
The change of scenery for Ministry of Social Development (MSD) clients at the Willis St, Wellington, office is part of a pilot programme to change the physical face of the organisation.
Among the changes are security guards with a warm greeting, vibrant green painted walls, comfortable couches, local artwork and an iPad-equipped children’s play area.
MSD regional manager Jamie Robinson said the changes might seem small but made a big difference to the client.
Clients would previously have their name checked by a security guard at the door, stand in lines, or wait in rows of rigid plastic chairs for appointments conducted in an open-plan office setting.
This set-up, found in the majority of offices around country, offers little privacy or comfort for what Robinson calls a ‘‘very personal experience’’.
‘‘They don’t want to be here, at often a vulnerable time.
‘‘They don’t want to overhear people’s conversations and they don’t want to be overheard.’’
Now, the office is divided into three zones: a front of house with seating and computers for clients to job hunt, the interview area with new cubicles for privacy and security, and a back office and safety zone for staff.
The cubicles and safety zone are part of another pilot project to increase security, after Russell John Tully entered the Ashburton Work and Income office in 2014 and shot dead two staffers.
Louise Davison, on the front of house project team, said many of the changes came direct from client workshops and surveys.
One client described entering the office and passing the rows of seats as a ‘‘walk of shame’’.
The bright green paint was said to be energising, ‘‘invoke hope’’, and will likely be found at other locations around the country.
A client using one of the computers, who declined to give her name, said the changes gave new life to a formerly ‘‘morbid’’ office.
‘‘It makes you feel like you can come here. It makes you want to stay and do your appointments.’’
The upgrades are planned to rollout from four – including New Plymouth, Flaxmere and Rotorua – to 40 of the organisation’s 120 sites by the end of the year at a cost of about $20,000 per office.
A culture overhaul at MSD and other social service providers continues to be espoused by Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni and others in the coalition Government.
National social development spokeswoman MP Louise Upston said changes to the physical environment may help, but criticism of Work and Income staff had been harsh.
‘‘Anything that helps them do their work better is important.’’