Whistleblower tells Fathers4Justice; “The CSA is in meltdown. My doctor said if I didn’t leave it would kill me.”
A frightened whistleblower working for the CSA and CMS has told Fathers4Justice that the service is in meltdown, with many staff taking prescription medication to combat the effects of stress and depression.
The whistleblower, who can’t be identified for fear of legal reprisals, was a caseworker at an office of the Child Maintenance Service, where Child Support Agency cases were being transferred to by the end of this year.
Speaking to Fathers4Justice last week she said, ‘It was the worst job in the world. The staff have given up. There was no training or dummy cases to practice on. The only support we received were team building courses and slide shows. It was like something out of a bad 1970’s comedy, only we weren’t laughing.’
‘My team of 15 people in Automated Financial Transfers were given 10,000 cases to process overnight with punishing targets. I was in disbelief. Many of these cases were transferred from the CSA to the CMS. Others were change of circumstance cases, mandatory reconsiderations, or cases which were being prepared for enforcement action. The phones were ringing off the hook and we had delays in excess of 6 months. We were drowning.’
‘To compensate, the management introduced “Dress Down Friday’s” and “Mindfulness Classes”. We even had “Mental Health First Aiders”. They weren’t qualified medical first aiders, but other members of staff who had received one days training. You couldn’t make it up.’
‘There were many cases where fathers had passed away or committed suicide. Even threatening to commit suicide generated a lot of extra paperwork. Many of us were also on the edge of a nervous breakdown or worse.’
‘In the end I saw my doctor, and he told me that if I didn’t leave such a high-pressured, harmful working environment, it could kill me, and that I shouldn’t go back into work.’
‘I’m pleased I left while I still had my sanity, but I fear for the people working there and the people they are supposed to be helping. The system is abusive and not fit for purpose. I hope I can work with Fathers4Justice in the future to bring these matters to the attention of MPs and the public.’
Said Fathers4Justice founder Matt O’Connor, ‘We know the Child Maintenance Service is a broken, unjust system that has reduced fathers to cashpoints and has driven many to their deaths.’
‘The revelation that the CMS is in crisis, whilst not a surprise, underlines the need for urgent, radical reform of the entire family justice and child support system.’
‘However we fear the government and politicians will simply continue to kick the can down the road whilst continuing to demonise fathers as feckless, failed deadbeats for cheap political capital.’
