In September 2020, Financial Counselling Victoria (FCVic) conducted a survey of Victorian financial counsellors to better understand how the sector has changed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The resulting report, New Costs to Count, provides a snapshot of the financial counsellors’ experiences, which shows the complexity of the changes wrought by the pandemic in its first nine months.

The report also considers – in the context of the issues identified in our earlier report (Counting the Costs published January 2020) – how COVID-19 has impacted on the existing levels of work-related stress, and what opportunities there are to introduce more sustainable work practices to minimize the risk of work overload and burnout.

We’ve made recommendations in the New Costs to Count report to enable funding bodies, agency employers and financial counsellors to address the issues identified and create a safer working environment for practitioners.