Board accepts findings, while report highlights funding shortfalls
An investigation into workplace culture at the National Board of Victim Support found "isolated" instances of bullying, cases that the organisation assured is not widespread within its ranks.
The findings come after a report by Charlotte Stevens, of RISQ New Zealand, on the alleged cases of bullying, lack of training, health and safety, as well as delivery issues within the organization.
In a report from Radio New Zealand, Stevens spoke with 88 people during her 12-month probe, including 70 workers, 16 former employees, two clients.
"We believed this investigation was necessary to understand the nature and extent of the concerns and support our goal of providing the very best environment for our dedicated team who work in incredibly demanding, stressful, and complex situations to help more than 40,000 victims in our community each year in their time of crisis," said Lorraine Scanlon, chair of the National Board of Victim Support, in a media release.
According to Scanlon, the feedback they received was "highly valuable" for the organisation, adding that they welcome the report's findings.
"The Board fully accepts the findings that identified some complaints were not progressed in a timely manner," said the chair.
"We also acknowledge that while there is not a widespread culture of bullying within Victim Support, there were likely some instances of isolated behaviour that could constitute bullying and/or one-off instances of rudeness."
She added that the investigation also confirmed that the concerns were "limited to one location and only related to a very small number" of their personnel.
"The National Board sincerely apologises to the team members who were impacted in this way," she said.
Read more: Bullying in NZ workplaces: How bad is it?
Scanlon also noted that the independent investigation underscored that funding shortfalls, as well as growing demand for services, were the primary causes of concern on service delivery and workers' training.
"It also found that several initiatives aimed at improving our service delivery model, worker training and wellbeing are either already in development or have been implemented by Victim Support as part of its 2030 Vision Workshops held with workers last year."
The report will not be released to public, said Scanlon, out of respect for the people who provided feedback. However, she assured that their staff have the right support granted to them.
"We are absolutely committed to ensuring our 660 valued staff and volunteers, who are at the heart of our organisation, have the right support and processes in place to enable them to provide the specialist to the growing number of victims in our community who need our help every day," she said.
"We recognise we need to continuously improve and evolve to support our dedicated team as they help more than 40,000 victims in our community each year in their time of crisis, working in incredibly demanding, stressful, and complex situations."
As part of the organisation's efforts on fostering a better workplace culture, Scanlon said they introduced several programmes over the past 12 months, including the establishment of a new Health, Safety, and Wellbeing Committee.
"The Board’s priority is to be highly transparent and collaborative and work with our dedicated team around New Zealand to continue providing specialised support to victims in Aotearoa New Zealand, and empower them to be safe, heal and participate at every step of their journey."
