Researchers Leighton Watson of the University of Canterbury and Bex Howells of Victoria University of Wellington have quantified the impact of unpaid training on social work, alongside teachers, nurses and midwives in their research article released today.
Their study, titled “Short-term Pain for Long-term Gain? Financial Implications of University Fees and Unpaid Placements on Workers in Healthcare and Education Industries,” explored whether the long-term earning potential in these professions compensates for the financial burden of training. The findings showed that, despite the higher salaries compared to male-dominated fields such as policing and firefighting, it takes many years in these female-dominated professions before those higher salaries lead to greater cumulative earnings.
Social workers will spend 12 years working full-time before their salaries (after tax and Kiwisaver deductions) exceed minimum wage when the costs associated with course fees and living expenses during training are considered.
This is the longest earning lag found between the four professions studies, attributed to the overall lower-earning power of social workers compared to nurses, teachers and midwives.
When compared to police, who are paid during their training, it takes social workers 27.9 years before their cumulative salary will exceed that of our male-dominant professional comparator.
“From a financial perspective, it may not make sense to train in these careers, which could help explain some of the workforce shortages in these professions.” Leighton comments.
These findings support the argument for paid professional placements, suggesting that this measure could significantly reduce the financial burden during training, which in turn may address both the high dropout rates and subsequent workforce shortages in social work, nursing, teaching and midwifery.
ANZASW has been honoured to work with Leighton and Bex, helping to inform this research and supporting the wider Paid Placements Aotearoa campaign. We are committed to advocating for the payment of students during professional placements and encourage our leaders across the sector to think about how we can work together to enable this change and secure a better future for our social work workforce.
