Only about 25% of staff employed by New Zealand’s Earthquake Commission (EQC) believe the organisation delivers on its promises, according to its own survey.

Opposition politicians say it proves morale is at “rock bottom”, and are calling for a full inquiry.

“After five years of failure, it’s time for [Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister] Gerry Brownlee to take his head out of the sand, admit how bad things have got there, and start taking action,” Labour’s Canterbury spokesman Megan Woods said.

The survey shows just 26.7% of employees believe the organisation delivers on promises it makes to customers, while 21.7% believe poor performance is dealt with effectively, 29.4% believe teams work well together and 35.1% believe communication is open and honest.

However, 87.1% say the people they work with co-operate to get the job done and 86.4% believe in what the EQC is trying to accomplish.

CEO Ian Simpson says the organisation grew from 22 to 1800 staff at its peak, to help resolve more than 469,000 Canterbury claims.

“Of course the survey showed some areas that need improvement, and this was not unexpected,” he said. “We are working on strategies to improve staff collaboration and internal communication.

“I am very proud of the work staff continue to do, and their commitment, in a unique and difficult environment.”