Security guards standing at the doors of Work and Income centres fear for their lives as they face increasing levels of abuse.
Guards have been posted at the doors of Work and Income offices since two staff were shot dead in Ashburton in 2014.
They now have to ask for ID and assess how much of a risk clients pose before they're let through the doors.
Speaking exclusively to Newshub, a guard who wants to remain anonymous says these protocols mean people are taking their frustration out on them at the door.
"Every day someone's desperate. They need help; they need aid or financial aid. If you go to any government department, our security guards are always frontline.
"They say, 'F*** get out the way. You're lucky I don't smash you.' They even threaten our families. They'll say, 'You have no idea what our families going through so I'm going to f*** your family up,'" he says.
The security guard says he has been punched, pushed and hit and is verbally abused even when he's not in uniform.
"You refuse entry to someone and then they start running their mouth off in terms of threats… When I'm outside of uniform too, these people remember you from when you were just standing outside the site doing your job."
A Ministry for Social Development spokesperson says in 2015, there were more than 4500 security incidents reported and more than 4000 last year.
Since September 2014, the numbers of security staff have been boosted from 169 to 278, with at least two security guards at each public site.
In 2016, the ministry spent more than $22 million on security across its sites, including at Work and Income as well as at Child Youth and Family centres.
The new security processes implemented in January mean only if a guard is satisfied the person is there for a genuine reason are they allowed to enter the building.
Jill Ovens from E Tu says people using Work and Income services are getting fed up after being put through hoops and are taking it out on the security guards, who are the first people they see at the door.
"At the root of the problem is Work and Income itself and how it deals with the people who come to it, who are in desperate need and come for help and support, which they're entitled to, and that needs to be remembered."
Ms Ovens says the protocol is putting the security guards at risk and is also breaching the privacy of Work and Income clients.
"They put up with a lot of abuse, [and] so do the Work and Income staff of course, which is why this whole system was put in place in the first place, because someone was so frustrated in Ashburton they went in and shot them."
MSD says there's a reporting process for guards to deal with threats, with each report considered by a manager on a case-by-case basis. Consequences range from warnings to trespass notices.
"We need to make it clear that threatening behaviour is not okay. With real people behind every threat and security incident recorded, it has real impact beyond the numbers on paper," it says in a statement.
"Ultimately, the health and safety of the Armourguard security guards lies with Armourguard," it says.
The security guard who spoke to Newshub says they've asked Armourguard for security measures such as stab-proof vests, walkie-talkies and signs telling people using the building they are required to check for ID.
But Armourguard says in a statement, these have been deemed unnecessary. It says it takes health and safety concerns seriously and encourages staff to raise concerns with their supervisor.
"We undertake to respond to any concerns raised in a timely and appropriate manner."
The security guard who spoke to Newshub says in terms of risk, the job is just not worth it.
"We are people too. The people of the public can be quite nasty, so just give us a break. We are doing our job the best way we know how, and secondly underpaid."
Newshub.
