Source: PSA
Almost 80 percent of support workers providing vital disability, home and community care, and mental health and addiction services have experienced workplace violence, research launched today shows.
Psychological violence was the most common form reported, with more than half of support workers experiencing insults, threats, bullying or intimidation at work, the W orkplace Violence in Community Based Care and Support Services report said.
Physical violence, sexual harassment and sexual violence were also widely reported.
Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi Assistant Secretary, Melissa Woolley, says the findings confirm what support workers have been telling the union for years.
“Almost 80 percent of support workers experiencing violence at work is a shocking number, but for care and support workers it will come as no surprise. They’ve been telling us this for years.
The report details the significant impact on workers of the violence.
Almost three-quarters felt anxious or depressed at the time of an incident, and nearly half still felt that way in the longer term. One in five reported impacts on their physical health in the longer term.
Despite this, the report highlights that training remains patchy. Almost half of workers said their employer didn’t provide training on responding to violence when they started their job, and more than half said refresher training wasn’t available.
“We need funded, mandatory training for support workers and managers across this sector, and we need employers to take reporting seriously instead of leaving workers to carry the risk alone,” Woolley said.
“Workplace violence should never be treated as just part of the job. It’s causing real harm to workers’ mental health, their careers, and their lives outside work.
“These are workers who show up every day to care for some of the most vulnerable people in our communities, and too often they’re doing it without proper training, without adequate support, and without their employer taking violence seriously.”
At the report launch event, attendees will hear from a support worker sharing their own experience, along with Debbie Hughes, Chief Executive of the Disability Support Network, and MPs Hon Jan Tinetti (Labour) and Hon Lawrence Xu-Nan (Green Party).
The report, W orkplace Violence in Community Based Care and Support Services, was produced by AUT’s Social Transformation Research Institute and New Zealand Policy Research Institute, led by Professor Katherine Ravenswood. It surveyed 299 support workers and managers across the country.
Event details:
- When: Thursday 30 July 2026 12- 1pm
- Where: PSA House, Level 6, 11 Aurora Terrace, Wellington.
Notes:
Full report attached. Report link will be live from 5am Thursday 30 July 2026: https://stri.aut.ac.nz/our-resources/workplace-violence-in-community-settings
The Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi is Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest trade union, representing and supporting more than 95,000 workers across central government, state-owned enterprises, local councils, health boards and community groups.