A recent survey released by the Australian Council of Social Service found that more than 90 per cent of people believe that workers in community services should be paid more than or equal to workers doing similar jobs in other industries.

Life Resolutions counsellor and psychologist Claudina Garcia said community service workers had long been underpaid across public and private sectors.

She believes the problem is due to a lack of awareness of how important these services are.

"We're so busy working with our clients in our practices and so we lack time to promote what we do," she said.

Ms Garcia said the west had a particularly high demand for such services and that there was not enough support available.

"This has a lot has to do with the socio-economic background in this area. Also, the level of accessibility and the lack of awareness of the services available."

Rapid growth and the arrival of many young families is also putting pressure on services, with relationship and adolescent counselling increasingly needed.

"We need to be able to help these people integrate into the community and link them to the community," she said.

Altona MP Jill Hennessy said conditions had to be improved for those working in community services.

"It is also an issue of pay equity given more women work in this sector. We need to value them in their pay packet.

"These are workers that look after very, very vulnerable people or they support families when the greatest crises of their lives happen. We cannot afford to have low-quality, low-paid people taking responsibility for communities in their darkest hours."

ACOSS chief executive Dr Cassandra Goldie said the Productivity Commission found that government funding routinely covered only 70per cent of the cost of delivering community services.