Child protection campaign attracts few

CHILD protection authorities have splashed out almost $200,000 on an international recruitment campaign.

CHILD protection authorities have splashed out almost $200,000 on an international recruitment campaign.

But the campaign, launched in a desperate attempt to fill the vacancies left by staff deserting the system, has attracted just seven workers from New Zealand.

While the Victorian Ombudsman, the state opposition and workers have raised concerns about increasing caseloads and having the worst-paid child protection staff in the country, the Brumby government has offered New Zealand staff and their families up to $5,500 in moving costs, airfares, furniture and accommodation.

But since the campaign -- which was originally given $310,000 to spend on advertising and recruitment seminars -- began last year, only four staff have started at offices around the state and another two are due to begin in the coming months.

Department of Human Services documents obtained through Freedom of Information laws show the New Zealand recruitment program cost $190,865 in June.

The documents also show on top of the six hired, one staffer was still waiting for a visa, another accepted but took a job in Queensland and a third staffer accepted but stayed in New Zealand after getting a promotion.

The cost of these seven staff members comes after The Australian revealed that a quarter of child protection workers hired from Britain have broken their contracts and fled the system.

Retaining frontline staff was identified as a major issue by the Ombudsman in his scathing report on child protection, which found there were thousands of unallocated cases and some staff were assigned 180 cases.

The Community and Public Sector Union say workers are leaving the system in droves -- 231 out of 1000 left last year -- because unworkable caseloads and management pressure to close cases early.

Victoria's child protection workers are paid from $49,000 to $69,000 a year. NSW staff are paid from $58,000 to $80,000 and Western Australian workers are paid between $54,000 to $97,000.

Opposition community services spokeswoman Mary Wooldridge said the government has no solution to the crisis. "Despite significant financial enticements, John Brumby is not able to even attract new staff from New Zealand . . . . New Zealander workers clearly know about the crisis here and are steering clear of having anything to do with the incompetence of the government."

A spokesman for Community Services Minister Lisa Neville said the New Zealand recruitment campaign was "ongoing".