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This story contains discussion of suicide and self-harm.
A lack of down time increased mental stress on staff at a military course for young people, a former tutor says.
The six-week Limited Service Volunteer (LSV) programme promises a fresh start for unemployed 18- to 24-year-olds. It has also been held up as the blueprint for the government's proposed boot camps, a pilot of which is due to begin shortly.
But a New Zealand Defence Force briefing paper, released to RNZ under the Official Information Act, warned of major problems with the course, including problems with the mental health of staff.
John* worked with the LSV team in Christchurch from 2015 to 2019.
"I was the section commander, which meant I was essentially on the day-to-day looking after groups anywhere between 30, maybe 40 people.
"We woke the trainees up each morning, having stayed overnight in the barracks. We took them to each meal, administered their medication, taught classroom lessons and drill. At the end of the day, we sent them to bed."
He said the majority of the job constituted of yelling at the young people "military style".
"You are telling people to hurry up from the moment they wake up to the moment you are putting them down for the night."
Now a stay-at-home dad and farmer, John said his job was also to look after those with severe mental illnesses.
He said ten years ago, a big proportion of those participating in the LSV course came from the youth justice system, with complex needs.
"Sometimes kids would come to me and say they want to commit suicide, that would knock me on my feet. I was immediately on the phone to my superiors.
"Sometimes they would sleep in mattresses right in front of the office where I was for the night shift, so I could keep an eye on them and stop them from harming themselves. It was hard to cope."
John said staff shortages meant he would be working without proper breaks.
"The understaffing was probably one of the major issues, the lack of respite so people could, you know, take some time off and go and decompress.
"You'll go to work and deal with those difficult situations, and no matter how it affected you, you've got to go back to the shift. Otherwise, someone's coming in on their day off and then they miss out on their downtime."
He said even with the support of a psychologist provided by the Defence Force, staffing levels meant he had no time for proper recovery.
"I'd still be back on shift either after my appointments or before them. I was just running on medication all the time.
"You just hear these stories... every course comes in and there's a new nightmare you're hearing. It was pretty hard to deal with."
John said the people leading such programmes needed to be specially trained.
Dealing with young offenders and dealing with soldiers was a totally different situation, he said.
"These young people, they need support, they don't need to be yelled at."
RNZ has contacted Police Minister Mark Mitchell for comment, but he has previously defended the success of the LSV programme.
In a statement, the Defence Force said things had changed and improved significantly since John was with the LSV programme.
"The Ministry of Social Development and NZDF have been working on issues related to staff safety in the LSV programme, and continue to do so.
"There is now a more robust system in place since an MOU was signed between the two agencies late last year, which has seen an increase in social workers assigned, and a more robust trainee selection process."
*Name changed to protect privacy.
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