Rural water corporations across Victoria have united in standing against workplace aggression.
Goulburn-Murray Water (GMW), Lower Murray Water (LMW), Southern Rural Water (SRW) and Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water (GWMWater) are all reinforcing that their people are there to support customers and community members, but have a zero-tolerance approach to aggression towards their team members.
The water corporations have staff in various roles who interact with customers, from those out in the field conducting maintenance on water delivery assets or doing meter reads, to those in the contact centres helping answer customers’ queries.
GMW Distributions Services manager Greg Shannon said staff were there to assist customers and had the right to a safe workspace. “Whether an employee is on someone’s property to resolve a maintenance issue, or is talking to a customer on the phone, they are there to help,” he said.
“We understand some customers are currently in stressful situations due to the dry weather, but threats and abuse are never acceptable.”
Rural water corporation staff occasionally have to conduct out of hours maintenance on certain assets, such as meters and flume gates.
These assets are often on private property, and while the water corporation will always try to notify landholders in advance, contacting them may not always be possible. Staff will always wear uniforms and have identification on them.
LMW Manager, Strategy and Communication Owen Russell asked customers to be understanding in these situations.
“We expect our staff to always treat customers and each other with courtesy and respect, and in return we ask that customers treat our staff in the same way.”
SRW Acting General Manager, Service Delivery Desiree Craig said safety of the water corporation’s people was vital and they needed customers’ support to ensure their team members remained safe at work.
“We take workplace safety seriously, and strive to ensure that all team members go home safely,” she said. “No employee should have to experience workplace aggression. It not only impacts their work but can be deeply damaging on a personal level.”
GWMWater Executive Manager Customer and Employee Experience, Adele Rohde, said the organisation understood the impacts of cost-of-living pressures.
“GWMWater has recently been more proactive in our approach to supporting customers to pay their bills. We have dedicated resources to assist customers to access utility relief and hardship grants,” she said.
“Our staff are here to help and we appreciate mutually respectful conversations with our customers, whether that is over the phone or in person.”
There are a range of support options available to irrigators that can be found on Agriculture Victoria’s website: https://agriculture.vic.gov.au/farm-management/dry-seasons-and-drought-support/dry-season-support
People can also contact their local water corporation to discuss financial hardship plans or how they can alter their entitlements.