Emergency welfare system ‘at risk of collapse’

THE system of emergency welfare payments is in danger of collapsing because of record job losses and a lack of staff to process claims, community welfare officers (CWOs) have warned.

They claim staff shortages are so chronic a growing number of staff are on stress-related leave and home visits to families in financial trouble have all but ceased.

The CWOs, members of SIPTU’s health professionals branch, said they were processing more than 200 cases a week, compared with 65 cases a little more than a year ago. They warned that, unless the Health Service Executive lifts its employment embargo, the system could reach breaking point.

There are 737 CWOs around the country, alongside 64 superintendents, working on the administration of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which covers a range of payments such as rent supplement, mortgage relief and the back to school clothing and footwear scheme, providing emergency or substitute welfare payments for people whose welfare claims are being assessed.

CWOs claimed a HSE recruitment embargo has maintained staffing at 2007 levels, despite the collapse in the economy and the soaring numbers signing on the live register and facing severe difficulties paying bills.

SIPTU health professionals branch organiser Kevin Figgis said the pressure on CWOs around the country was so intense that the entire welfare system was buckling under the pressure: “The community welfare service as it is currently designed will collapse.”

Yesterday secretary of the SIPTU CWO executive Joe McGloin appealed for the “handcuffs to be removed” so CWOs can cater for the people forming lengthy queues outside welfare offices around the country.

Figures show that the average increase in basic social welfare allowance claims soared by 52% nationally when comparing the last week of 2006 with the last week of 2008. In the midlands the figure rocketed by 85%. The average increase in rent supplements climbed by 32% on average nationally when comparing figures from the same two weeks, with the figures for the midlands, north west and north east showing increases of 50% or more.

CWOs from around the country said home visits had to be scrapped because of growing caseloads, while a CWO for north Kildare said stress was affecting staff.

The pressure on the welfare system has grown to such a level that in recent weeks the labour exchange in Newbridge had to close for a period because the overcrowding was deemed a health and safety risk.

“We effectively have a staffing level for when there were 150,000 on the live register and we have a department which has remained stagnant in that time,” Mr Figgis said. “There is a responsibility on both of them [Department of Social and Family Affairs and the HSE] to ensure the service is adequate.”

CWOs also dismissed claims from Health Minister Mary Hanafin that 200 new posts would be created in her department, stating that these were unlikely to ease the workload of CWOs.

The HSE said it was looking to “determine the amount of additional resources required to meet current demand”.

The HSE added it was preparing a national business plan for submission to the Department of Finance for approval of additional resources and also said it was looking at proposals toalleviate existing workloadsand at vacancies that needto be filled as a matter of priority.