Source: Etu Union
What has been the impact of COVID19 on Community Support workers?
Are you interested in talking to other workers about their experiences?
In partnership with E tū and PSA unions, AUT Business School researchers are interested in hearing about the experiences of community support workers during the COVID-19 period, and the impact of these experiences on the wellbeing of community support workers. We see community support workers as a core part of the essential workforce, and a part that needs their voices heard!
Our research aims to form recommendations in partnership with the workforce, to help initiate improvements in workers wellbeing, and to inform the response in any future disruptive events.
The research is going to be conducted using a participant researcher approach, which means that community support workers, who have been trained by the research team, will be the interviewers. This makes sure they have an understanding of what workers go through at work every day.
We are currently looking for people interested in being part of the project as participant interviewers.
This would involve:
- A training day, where you would be interviewed by the research team about your experiences, and trained in the interview process.
- You would then interview three community support workers, recording the interviews on either your mobile phone or a digital recording device, at a time and place that suits you both. Each interview would last approximately one hour.
- You would send the interview files to the research team.
- After the research team has had the interviews transcribed and we have formed initial themes, we will have another meeting with participant researchers (possibly virtually) to get your feedback on our interpretation of what is being said by participants.
- We will send you all draft recommendations to give feedback if you wish.
This work would be paid, with participant researchers being compensated for their time and travel in these activities.
If you are confident in talking to others, and are wanting to be part of something that can potentially impact the wellbeing of the community support workforce, please contact us to find out more!
If you are interested in finding out more, please email Katherine Ravenswood: [email protected]
