By Tess Ikonomou in Canberra

Recruitment problems are behind the shortfall in hundreds of promised frontline domestic violence support workers, the women’s minister says.

Katy Gallagher says only 30 of the 500 staff promised during the last federal election have been hired and it wasn’t as “many as we would like”.

Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth was working with state and territory counterparts to recruit the workers as soon as possible.

“The money is there,” Senator Gallagher told ABC’s Insiders on Sunday.

“The states’ view is they’re having issues with recruiting… they’ve signed on to an agreement to have the vast majority of them employed in the first half of this year, but they are saying that staff and recruiting staff is an issue.”

While there was no one cause behind domestic violence, it was at “epidemic proportions across the country”, she said.

“When I read the cases in the paper… when I see day after day, every four days in this country at the moment, a woman is killed at the hands of a former partner, I think something is not working,” she said.

“There’s an expectation from the community that we have to respond to this.”

The government last week announced women trying to escape violent partners would get access to up to $5000 in support payments.

The program will be a permanent extension of a previous trial set up under the previous government.

The federal budget, to be handed down on May 14, will include more than $925 million over five years for people fleeing unsafe situations as well as new referrals to support services.