About SWAN
SWAN is an informal network within the PSA that aims to unify, inspire, inform, and advocate for social workers. We have a qualified social worker and community public service board member available in the PSA office every Friday to provide support, resources and advocacy for social workers and any members who may be working with or representing social workers.
You can be involved in SWAN in a number of ways, membership is voluntary and can mean simply getting the newsletter, or getting engaged in identifying issues for social workers in your workplace and/or community and feeding that in to SWAN for action.
If you want to become more active SWAN has bi-monthly meetings to strategise, develop campaigns and share information. If you are Wellington based you can attend in person at PSA house on Aurora Terrace, Level 6. For those who are based elsewhere you can join in by phone conference. To obtain further meeting details and how you can get involved contact Amy Ross on swan@psa.org.nz
Where did SWAN come from?
The PSA already provides considerable support to many social workers, particularly within the state sector. Over the last year there has been a developing commitment to expanding union coverage within the PSA’s Community Public Services (CPS).
This sector includes non-government organisations, both large and small, which receive some type of government funding to provide public services. CPS are often made up of a myriad of different types of employees – from youth workers to advocates, counsellors to social workers.
The developing unionisation of the community sector has highlighted issues for some professions which span a variety of sectors, organisations and roles. Social workers are one of these professions.
SWAN is a group of social workers who have come together to respond to these issues by supporting the expansion of CPS, feeding in to defining and advocating for the unique needs of the social work community and developing a sense of cohesion, unity and strength amongst social workers in every practice area.