AUSTRALIA: LOOKING BACK
Worked through big social changes
When John Marshall first started work at Child Youth and Family, milk was 4 cents a bottle, the Beatles hit All You Need is Love was No. 1, man had not stepped on the moon and the Vietnam War was raging. It was 1967, and on August 27 a young Mr Marshall walked into the social security office on the corner of Reads Quay and Gladstone Road and began the first stage of his lengthy career in the social work sector.
Mr Marshall says he had no intention of staying there "forever and a day" -- but more than 40 years later, on his retirement, he leaves happy, full of stories about working during some of the biggest social changes in history.
In 1967, only two or three people were paid the unemployment benefit in this district. It was mostly war pensions and the widow's benefit.Two years later, in 1969 when the domestic purposes benefit was brought in, a "flood of women" used this to escape "ugly situations".
"Women suffered enormously in the '60s and slowly it changed with the help of pioneering women like Miriam Saphira, along with a whole group of women associated with the women's movement, and slowly the government implemented their concerns. The government tended to follow public opinion and, gradually, the public accepted that it wasn't right to behave that way."
"Once violence was accepted, but hidden. We knew it was there but no one did anything about it. So, too, with sexual issues like rape." The fact that it is talked about more is a great improvement and a lot healthier, he says. "Before, it was hidden and some people were leading awful, secret lives. People often think life these days is awful but, in fact, there has been a lot of progress."
For example, in 1996 the Domestic Violence Act came into legislation. "It did take a long time. Before that there was very little that could be done legally."
It is not an easy sector to work in, as staff face hostility, as he has himself over the years. "The coalface of social work sees more hostility now because drugs and alcohol are more prevalent. Back in the '60s drugs were not an issue. Now, almost every case is dealing with drugs, alcohol and violence, and it's not just young people -- it is spread across the board."
There is a lot of job satisfaction, but it is a long process and you have to be patient, he says.
For the past 14 years Mr Marshall has worked as care and protection co-ordinator of family conferences. This came about when the 1989 legislation said social workers could not uplift children, or separate children from family, without certain procedures. "That act was revolutionary."
Resolution became the focus rather than investigation. "My job then became organising and gathering family for conferences -- enabling them to have a say with regard to what happened to their children." This was at odds with the doomsayers who said it could not be expected that an alcoholic dysfunctional family would care. "They do care, they are concerned and they don't want their children to go into care," he said.
The meetings and resolution processes became an acceptable method of working out social problems. "I have a lot of faith in it," he said.
Gisborne and East Coast families are generally very good at stepping forward to look after children, he says. Big numbers show up at meetings, thanks to the extended family structure of both Maori and Pakeha families."It shows a commitment to the child and it is great to see."
Agencies working together has been another big step forward. "It wasn't an easy thing to make happen but it is now at a point where it is working well.
"It has been a fascinating job, especially in the area we cover. You are driving through beautiful countryside and meeting fascinating people. You can front up to a household full of significant problems but still you are offered a cup of tea. You are asking these awful questions and there is this in-built courtesy."
Most of his working life was spent on the road visiting clients, returning to his desk to write reports before filing them in the card system. Everything now is "highly computerised".
"When I became a social worker I really had no idea what I was in for. It became a matter of learning while working and I attended lots of courses and seminars. It becomes a very personal exercise about what you choose to put into it." The failures, when they inevitably happened, were the worst imaginable. Children committed suicide, were badly beaten and a few suffered death. "Many times over the years I have felt distress and have taken it home but my wife helped me to snap out of it."
Mr Marshall says he is looking forward to retiring and, while he has made no big plans, there are plenty of things that he wants to do now that he has the time. "I leave with a high opinion of my colleagues, who are doing a tough job."
The main message, he says, is that the family conferences and the consultation processes are very valuable. "Long may they continue."
Sophie Rishworth
1 March 2008
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