Mel
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
Mel is in her 50s and has borderline personality disorder (BPD). She is a disability support worker.
‘I walked in with no experience 10 years ago. I was put across five houses,’ Mel told the Royal Commission. ‘Forty per cent of the customers had quite high behaviours.’
Mel has since completed training courses and has several qualifications, but she said the industry is still hiring support workers who are poorly trained and have no experience.
‘We’re hiring the wrong staff. The good staff are going. We’re not getting rid of the staff that we need to because we’re so short-staffed … We are going through staff like you wouldn’t believe.’
Mel said new support staff employed by her service provider are given a five-day induction over the internet.
‘We are no longer doing face-to-face … We’ve got so many people that are coming on board with no experience … newbies that have never worked in the industry. They’re going onto floors of houses that are already damaged with staff that have been there too long.’
Mel said although many frontline staff ‘do an amazing job’, the high turnover rate leads to poor morale, more resignations and poor services.
‘For our customers to get the support we need to have the right staff. To have the right staff, we need to be able to do the right thing by them, which means better training and also, you know, have them come back [each day to work]. We need to look at that.’
Mel said the lack of training and shortage of staff leads to errors. In one group home medication errors forced the company to conduct a training session, but this too was delivered online.
‘[And] we’re so short-staffed in some areas that we book it, maybe only three show up because so many people are either off sick or we don’t have the staff.’
Mel said the move away from face-to-face training to online training started during the COVID-19 lockdowns and continues because it’s cheaper.
‘They save money this way.’
Despite her concerns for the industry, Mel loves her job.
‘I love it with such passion. You know what? Without me heading into this sector I may not have even been able to get myself right. You know this industry has made me a better person.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.