On this page:
- Indicator: Increase workforce diversity
- Measure: Number/proportion of workforce who identify as from a priority community – ATSI, CALD, LGBTIQ+, disability
- Indicator: Increase workforce skills and capabilities
- Measure: Number/proportion of workforce who report confidence they have enough training and experience to perform their role effectively
- Indicator: Increase in health, safety and wellbeing of the family violence workforce
- Measure: Number/proportion of workforce who report work-related stress
Indicator: Increase workforce diversity
Measure: Number/proportion of workforce who identify as from a priority community – ATSI, CALD, LGBTIQ+, disability
The Royal Commission highlighted the lack of detailed knowledge and essential workforce data about family violence workers in Victoria.
To address this gap, we undertake the family violence workforce census every two years. The census collects data and information about family violence workforces.
The following indicators and measures use the survey results from the 2019–20 census. Subsequent results will be compared with these to identify any progress made.
In 2019–20, most family violence workers identified as female (85–87 per cent), with 1 per cent identifying as non-binary (self-described).
Between 7 per cent and 13 per cent of the specialist family violence response and primary prevention workforces are classified as having a disability. This means they experience difficulties or restrictions which affect their participation in work activities.
Between 3–4 per cent of workers identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.
Between 6–7 per cent of workers spoke languages other than English at home.
Family violence workforce diversity 2019–20: specialist family violence response workforce
| Priority community | Number of responses | Total responses to questions | Proportion of workforce responses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander | 41 | 1,357 | 3% |
| Person with a disability (This refers to people who experience difficulties or restrictions which affect their participation in work activities) | 94 | 1,366 | 7% |
| Speaks a language other than English at home | 97 | 1,384 | 7% |
| Uses their culture or faith-based knowledge and experience in undertaking their work | 478 | 1,196 | 40% |
| Born outside of Australia | 273 | 1,363 | 20% |
| Self-described gender | 14 | 1,374 | 1% |
| Age 55-74 | 278 | 1,391 | 20% |
Source: Family Violence Workforce Census 2019–20
Family violence workforce diversity 2019–20: primary prevention workforce
| Priority community | Number of responses | Total responses to questions | Proportion of responses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander | 17 | 435 | 4% |
| Person with a disability (This refers to people who experience difficulties or restrictions which affect their participation in work activities) | 56 | 429 | 13% |
| Speaks a language other than English at home | 26 | 437 | 6% |
| Uses their culture or faith-based knowledge and experience in undertaking their work | 135 | 387 | 35% |
| Born outside of Australia | 86 | 431 | 20% |
| Self-described gender | 4 | 438 | 1% |
| Age 55-74 | 107 | 445 | 24% |
Source: Family Violence Workforce Census 2019–20
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These explanatory notes are for all tables under the measure 'Number/proportion of workforce who identify as from a priority community – ATSI, CALD, LGBTIQ+, disability'.
Source
Data for this measure is from the Family Safety Victoria, Family Violence Workforce Census reports including the:
2019–20 census of workforces that intersect with family violence: Survey Findings Report – Specialist Family Violence Response Workforce, available here
2019–20 census of workforces that intersect with family violence: Survey Findings Report – Primary Prevention Workforce, available here.
Definition
Numerator – Number of workers who indicated ‘yes’ to relevant survey question.
Denominator – Total worker responses for survey question, by workforce type.
Time period
The included data covered the 2019-20 report only.
Data details
Specialist family violence workforce includes:
those who work directly with victim survivors, perpetrators, or cases of family violence as a family violence response specialist
those who work directly with family violence response specialists as a manager, supervisor or trainer; or in a capacity building, policy or practice development role.
Example roles: family violence or justice case manager, family violence outreach, refuge worker, counsellor / phone support, crisis worker, men’s behaviour change practitioner or case manager, RAMP Coordinator, intake or enhanced intake, sexual assault worker, family violence court practitioner or court registrar, etc.
Primary prevention includes:
those who work to prevent family violence through systemic / organisational / community level initiatives.
Example roles: family violence primary prevention officer or practitioner, family violence or respectful relationships educator, gender equity officer, prevention of violence against women officer, family violence health promotion officer, manager or trainer of primary prevention officers or practitioners, etc.
Survey Coordinators were carefully recruited to ensure good coverage of all areas of the workforces that intersect with family violence in Victoria. Coordinators were asked to either email the survey link directly to their contacts, or act as an intermediary, by asking their contacts to share the link to relevant cohorts within their extended network. A total of 22 Survey Coordinators assisted in promoting and disseminating the census across the three workforces.
Data quality and caveats
A census was also undertaken in 2017, however many of the survey questions had changed and were not comparable.
Full / Partial / Proxy / Ideal
Partial – data reported is reflective only of the family violence workforce who participated in the Family Violence Workforce Census and responded to the relevant question reflected in this data.
Indicator: Increase workforce skills and capabilities
Measure: Number/proportion of workforce who report confidence they have enough training and experience to perform their role effectively
Many workforces that intersect with family violence – including in mainstream and universal services – require training to build the family violence prevention and response capability across the system.
We have heard through our engagement with family violence practitioners that there is a strong association between receiving training in family violence or primary prevention and feeling confident to identify and respond to those experiencing family violence.1
Accordingly, this training is fundamental to the success of the family violence reforms, particularly The Orange Door, the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme and the Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Management (MARAM) framework.
In the 2019–20 Family Violence Workforce Census, at least half of the family violence workforce (61 per cent for specialist family violence response and 50 per cent for primary prevention) felt very to extremely confident in their level of training and experience to complete their role.
The survey identified that confidence rose with age and years of experience.
The top-two identified areas for additional support required to increase confidence for both cohorts were:
- further information sharing and collaboration with other service providers
- a community of practice for each cohort.
Family violence workforce confidence in level of training and experience 2019–20: specialist family violence response workforce (total responses 1,486)
| Confidence rating | Number of responses | Proportion of responses |
|---|---|---|
| Extremely confident | 178 | 12% |
| Very confident | 728 | 49% |
| Moderately confident | 446 | 30% |
| Slightly confident | 104 | 7% |
| Not confident | 15 | 1% |
Source: Family Violence Workforce Census, 2019–20
Family violence workforce confidence in level of training and experience 2019–20: primary prevention workforce (total responses 463)
| Confidence rating | Number of responses | Proportion of responses |
|---|---|---|
| Extremely confident | 60 | 13% |
| Very confident | 171 | 37% |
| Moderately confident | 171 | 37% |
| Slightly confident | 46 | 10% |
| Not confident | 19 | 4% |
Source: Family Violence Workforce Census, 2019–20
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These explanatory notes are for all tables under the measure 'Number/proportion of workforce who report confidence they have enough training and experience to perform their role effectively'.
Source
Data for this measure is from the Family Safety Victoria, Family Violence Workforce Census reports including the:
2019-–20 census of workforces that intersect with family violence: Survey Findings Report – Specialist Family Violence Response Workforce, available here
2019–20 census of workforces that intersect with family violence: Survey Findings Report – Primary Prevention Workforce, available here.
Definition
Numerator – Number of workers who indicated ‘yes’ to relevant survey question.
Denominator – Total worker responses for survey question, by workforce type.
Time period
The included data covered the 2019-20 report only.
Data details
Specialist family violence workforce includes:
those who work directly with victim survivors, perpetrators, or cases of family violence as a family violence response specialist
those who work directly with family violence response specialists as a manager, supervisor or trainer; or in a capacity building, policy or practice development role.
Example roles: family violence or justice case manager, family violence outreach, refuge worker, counsellor / phone support, crisis worker, men’s behaviour change practitioner or case manager, RAMP Coordinator, intake or enhanced intake, sexual assault worker, family violence court practitioner or court registrar, etc.
Primary prevention includes:
those who work to prevent family violence through systemic / organisational / community level initiatives.
Example roles: family violence primary prevention officer or practitioner, family violence or respectful relationships educator, gender equity officer, prevention of violence against women officer, family violence health promotion officer, manager or trainer of primary prevention officers or practitioners, etc.
Survey Coordinators were carefully recruited to ensure good coverage of all areas of the workforces that intersect with family violence in Victoria. Coordinators were asked to either email the survey link directly to their contacts, or act as an intermediary, by asking their contacts to share the link to relevant cohorts within their extended network. A total of 22 Survey Coordinators assisted in promoting and disseminating the census across the three workforces.
Data quality and caveats
A census was also undertaken in 2017, however many of the survey questions had changed and were not comparable.
Full / Partial / Proxy / Ideal
Partial – data reported is reflective only of the family violence workforce who participated in the Family Violence Workforce Census and responded to the relevant question reflected in this data.
Indicator: Increase in health, safety and wellbeing of the family violence workforce
Measure: Number/proportion of workforce who report work-related stress
Work-related stress can lead to burnout (prolonged physical and psychological exhaustion).
This affects workers in ways including:
- physical and emotional stress
- low job satisfaction
- feeling frustrated by or judgemental of clients
- feeling under pressure, powerless and overwhelmed
- frequent sick or mental health days
- irritability and anger.
Family violence workforce work-related stress 2019–20: specialist family violence response workforce
| Work-related stress level | Number of workers | Proportion of workforce responses |
|---|---|---|
| None | 14 | 1% |
| Low | 303 | 21% |
| Moderate | 649 | 45% |
| High | 332 | 23% |
| Very high | 116 | 8% |
| Severe | 29 | 2% |
| Total | 1,443 | 100% |
| Feels safe performing role | Number of workers | Proportion of workforce responses |
|---|---|---|
| Always or often | 1,213 | 85% |
| Sometimes or less often | 214 | 15% |
| Total | 1,427 | 100% |
Source: Family Violence Workforce Census, 2019-20
Family violence workforce work-related stress 2019–20: primary prevention workforce
| Work-related stress level | Number of workers | Proportion of workforce responses |
|---|---|---|
| None | 5 | 1% |
| Low | 105 | 23% |
| Moderate | 206 | 45% |
| High | 92 | 20% |
| Very high | 41 | 9% |
| Severe | 9 | 2% |
| Total | 458 | 100% |
| Feels safe performing role | Number of workers | Proportion of workforce responses |
|---|---|---|
| Always or often | 397 | 88% |
| Sometimes or less often | 54 | 12% |
| Total | 451 | 100% |
Source: Family Violence Workforce Census, 2019-20
Most workers in both the specialist family violence response and primary prevention workforces experience at least moderate stress, with approximately one-third experiencing at least high levels of stress.
High workload is the key driver of high, very high and severe levels of stress in these workforces. Half the cohort reports that they only sometimes have sufficient time to complete tasks.
Positively, over 75 per cent are satisfied to very satisfied with their current role. Nearly all workers felt their work made a moderate to significant difference to people affected by family violence.
Satisfaction with role and perceived impact of work (combined specialist family violence and primary prevention workforce) – 2019–20
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These explanatory notes are for all graphs and tables under the measure 'Number/proportion of workforce who report work-related stress'.
Source
Data for this measure is from the Family Safety Victoria, Family Violence Workforce Census reports including the:
2019–20 census of workforces that intersect with family violence: Survey Findings Report – Specialist Family Violence Response Workforce, available here
2019–20 census of workforces that intersect with family violence: Survey Findings Report – Primary Prevention Workforce, available here.
Definition
Numerator – Number of workers who indicated ‘yes’ to relevant survey question.
Denominator – Total worker responses for survey question, by workforce type.
Time period
The included data covered the 2019-20 report only.
Data details
Specialist family violence workforce includes:
those who work directly with victim survivors, perpetrators, or cases of family violence as a family violence response specialist
those who work directly with family violence response specialists as a manager, supervisor or trainer; or in a capacity building, policy or practice development role
Example roles: family violence or justice case manager, family violence outreach, refuge worker, counsellor / phone support, crisis worker, men’s behaviour change practitioner or case manager, RAMP Coordinator, intake or enhanced intake, sexual assault worker, family violence court practitioner or court registrar, etc.
Primary prevention includes:
those who work to prevent family violence through systemic / organisational / community level initiatives
Example roles: family violence primary prevention officer or practitioner, family violence or respectful relationships educator, gender equity officer, prevention of violence against women officer, family violence health promotion officer, manager or trainer of primary prevention officers or practitioners, etc.
Survey Coordinators were carefully recruited to ensure good coverage of all areas of the workforces that intersect with family violence in Victoria. Coordinators were asked to either email the survey link directly to their contacts, or act as an intermediary, by asking their contacts to share the link to relevant cohorts within their extended network. A total of 22 Survey Coordinators assisted in promoting and disseminating the Census across the three workforces.
Data quality and caveats
A census was also undertaken in 2017, however many of the survey questions had changed and were not comparable.
Full / Partial / Proxy / Ideal
Partial – data reported is reflective only of the family violence workforce who participated in the Family Violence Workforce Census and responded to the relevant question reflected in this data.
Notes
1Family Safety Victoria 2019, Building from strength: 10-year industry plan for family violence prevention and response, State Government of Victoria, Melbourne.
Reviewed 14 April 2022