2oth February 2009

Jobcentre Plus workers in Wales suffered almost 2,400 physical or verbal assaults over the past three years.

The figures have been made public following a request under the Freedom of Information Act by Plaid Cymru AM Chris Franks.

Mr Franks fears staff may face increased abuse as unemployment rises further.

He said: "We found a surprising level of physical and verbal abuse that the public servants are experiencing in Jobcentres.

"There were about 2,400 incidents over a three year period.

"There are verbal threats, there is aggressive behaviour, there is spitting, there is throwing things around offices.

"All that type of thing is just not acceptable and the staff members have to be protected."

Abuse categorised

Department for Work and Pensions records divide abuse into categories - verbal, physical and other.

The third category covers such events as abusive correspondence, hitting screens or throwing items which miss.

During the past three years, 2,400 incidents of verbal abuse were recorded, as well as 41 complaints of physical abuse and one hundred and 94 other incidents.

Union representation

The Public and Commercial Services Union represents many Jobcentre Plus workers.

Its Wales Vice Chair John Waters says underreporting of abusive behaviour is common, and there has been a marked rise in stress-related absences from work.

Mr Waters knows of a stabbing, of people letting rape alarms off down phones to damage advisers' hearing and of other serious incidents.

He said: "One of the offices in the Rhondda Cynon Taf area - somebody went into the office there with an imitation gun.

"The office manager did the sensible thing and closed the office.

"It was an imitation but the individuals there who were dealing with the person at the time weren't aware that it was an imitation and there was a great deal of distress there amongst them."

(Source BBC News)

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