Outsourced call centre staff at NDIS have to pretend to work for government, workers say | Australia news

Outsourced call center staff on national disability insurance scheme (NDIS) phone lines are required to act as public servants and are responsible for deciding which funding requests to prioritize despite having received no specific welfare training, workers say.

Workers at Serco, a leading outsourcing provider, were also given government agency email addresses; This makes it impossible for the public to distinguish them from direct employees, despite huge differences in pay, conditions, training and support.

A Serco call center worker told Guardian Australia the government had “outsourced maintenance to contractors”, keeping staff away from the public service.

“The truth is that we represent the government and we have to act as if we are public servants and we are not allowed to say that we are Serco,” said the worker, who did not want to be named.

Serco is a major private contractor for the Australian government, with multibillion-dollar contracts in defence, healthcare, contact centers and community services.

While the British multinational has been growing rapidly in the region, it has notably lost its long-standing contract for coastal migrant detention facilities in 2024.

“Instead of sending nuisance cases to the actual NDIS, priority cases should be reviewed and identified by our Serco team leaders, who do not have outreach or disability training or the financial qualifications to understand participants’ budgets.”

Outsourcers are on phone lines and handle email tasks, and their statistics are closely monitored.

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Over the past few months, Guardian Australia has detailed the widespread use of private call centers by government agencies, including the Australian Taxation Office and Centrelink.

Workers describe a system characterized by inadequate training and low wages, and say profits take precedence over workers’ well-being and quality of service.

Government moves to reduce reliance on external consultants and agency workers have stalled just two years after Labor ordered organizations to bring skills back in-house.

A Serco spokesman said the company provides vital support to the public service and works “seamlessly in collaboration” with the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).

“Serco NDIA staff were in no way directed to make false statements,” the spokesperson said.

An NDIA spokesperson said only public service staff with appropriate delegation can “act and proceed” with priority plan change requests.

‘Bedridden due to broken crane’

Serco employees told Guardian Australia that NDIS callers often faced delays and received inadequate guidance due to call center regulations.

For example, Serco team leaders can decide whether an urgent funding request should be prioritized, while the queue itself is managed by NDIA’s direct employees.

A second Serco employee told Guardian Australia: “People call and ask how their urgent change of plan request is going and we have to tell them it’s still in the queue and it’s overdue, but we’re not allowed to admit we’re not a public service so we can’t give them a reason why.”

“Someone may be confined to bed because of a hoist malfunction, they cannot be lifted out of bed without two people, the hoist may be faulty and they may be out of money.

“The whole thing is completely wrong; you can’t apply this call center framework to the most vulnerable people in Australia.”

Serco’s latest NDIA contract commenced in September 2024 for a three-year term, with the option of up to two three-year extensions. He said there was a team of 1,200 people in the communications center at the time.

According to interviews with outsourced call center staff at different private operators, starting salary rates at outsourcing centers are around $52,800 per year, while for many public servants using the same phone lines, the figure is more than $72,000.

Although the model is based on private operators delivering call center functions more efficiently than the public service, experts have warned that it is an illusion that a private operator can deliver the same quality at a lower cost, ensuring profits are made.

Community and Public Sector Union deputy national secretary Beth Vincent-Pietsch said Australians seeking NDIS help deserved to speak to an educated, supported and accountable public servant, not “a stranded worker employed at a not-for-profit call centre”.

“This is a model that sometimes fails Australians who need urgent help from the NDIA and the workers who are asked to carry it,” Vincent-Pietsch said.

“Providing Australians with the support they need from the NDIA is essential government work that must undoubtedly be done by Australian public service workers.

“NDIA’s long-standing and problematic reliance on outsourcing undermines the quality of service and public confidence across the program and needs to be urgently addressed.”