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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Jonathan Barrett Business editor

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

The illustration shows call centre workers in a large building with the NDIS logo.
Outsourced call centre staff on the NDIS phone lines have told Guardian Australia they must pretend to be public servants, and decide which funding requests are prioritised despite having no specialised training. Illustration: Victoria Hart/Guardian Design

Outsourced call centre staff on the national disability insurance scheme (NDIS) phone lines must pretend to be public servants, according to workers, and are responsible for deciding which funding requests are prioritised despite having no specialised welfare training.

Workers at Serco, a major outsource provider, have also been issued government agency email addresses, making it impossible for the public to tell them apart from direct employees despite vast differences in their pay, conditions, training and support.

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