Centrelink vows 'doing everything we can' as telephone wait times grow

Centrelink telephone wait times have been longer by some seconds last financial year. Those contacting the welfare agency waited on average 15 minutes and 44 seconds to speak to someone, Centrelink’s annual report shows.

The report comes amid horror stories that Centrelink telephone wait times are getting longer and that people wait for about an hour for help. But Centrelink said the wait time is still within the target of 16 minutes.

People are phoning Centrelink for a variety of reasons. Some are calling due to disability, sickness or carers payments. Those calling for this type of concern reportedly waited on average 28 minutes and 17 seconds.

Young people and students contacting Centrelink also had to wait to speak to someone. It’s the same case for those trying to reach employment hotlines.

Labor's Social Services spokeswoman Jenny Macklin said it is an absolute disgrace from the Turnbull government. "All of these are increases in the length of time that people have to wait to get through for their urgent Centrelink calls,” she added.

People use social media to complain about “excessive” phone wait times. One said he waited for minutes to talk to someone who said she could not help. The caller had to be transferred and had to wait another 20 minutes.

Another who called in the morning to verify income reporting was asked to call back in the afternoon. The line, however, was said to be busy for some hours.

Some took to the Department of Human Services Facebook page to vent their frustration. “Every time I ring Newstart they always have a busy number not once have I been let through so frustrating,” one wrote.

Agency spokesperson Hank Jongen told the ABC that wait time only represents a 35-second increase from the past year. He added that the agency understands people’s frustration, and it is doing everything it can to improve.

The average wait time was 15 minutes and 9 seconds during the 2015-16 financial year. It was supposedly the longest time recorded since the Department of Human Services (DHS) overhauled its reporting regime. DHS is Centrelink's parent agency.

According to Jongen, the agency was confident it would meet its target this financial year. He added that up to 250 contractors were added to help answer calls that were becoming increasingly complex. Over 55 million calls were met with an engaged tone in 2016-17.