Voices of Youth on Workforce Turnover

1
Voices of Youth on Workforce Turnover

• Sharon Kollar, LMSW
• National Child Welfare Workforce Institute
• Justin Hoffert
• Youth in Progress

2
Introduction

• 39 out of 57 (68) NYS counties have experienced
  turnover of 25 or higher in at least one year
  since 2001
• There is now a wide range of literature on the
  etiology of workforce turnover in child welfare
• Empirical studies on the effects of turnover on
  child outcomes are growing, although at the time
  of this study they were sparse
• Until recently, the voices and experiences of
  youth within the system had been largely
  overlooked

3
Purpose

• The purposes of this study were
• Explore the experiences and opinions of youth
  about child welfare workforce turnover and
  retention
• Harness the suggestions of youth in resolving the
  turnover problem

4
Methodology

• Small Pilot study
• Engaged Youth In Progress to help develop the
  focus group questions
• Focus groups were conducted with 25 youth leaders
  who were in the child welfare system at the time
  of the study
• The focus groups were run by two trained social
  work researchers with backgrounds in child
  welfare, group work and adolescent development.
• Content analysis was used to analyze the focus
  group data.

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Participants

• Average age was 17.6 years old.
• Average number of placements, excluding
  independent living, was 4.4, range from 1 to 9.
• 36 of the youth were placed in an independent
  living program at the time of the focus groups.
• Youth had been in the child welfare system an
  average of 8.5 years (range from 4 months to 20
  years).
• 40 of the sample were African American, 12 were
  Latino, 24 reported being two or more races, and
  20 Caucasian.

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Sample Focus Group Questions

• For those of you with more than one caseworker,
  think of the time when you were switched from one
  worker to another. How did your experience of
  switching caseworkers affect you?
• For those of you who did not raise your hands,
  how would you describe your experience of having
  one worker?
• What are your ideas for how to retain workers?

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Summary of Findings
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Effects of caseworker turnover

• Four themes relating to caseworker turnover were
  identified by the youth focus groups
• Lack of stability
• Loss of trust
• Second chances
• Suggestions for changes in practice

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Lack of Stability

• 36 of the participants identified feeling a lack
  of emotional and physical stability due to the
  constant changing of caseworkers.
• In addition to describing a feeling of
  instability, the majority (15) of the youth
  described the re-traumatization of losing their
  families that coincided with the loss of a
  caseworker.
• Two participants discussed their observation that
  the changes in caseworkers had caused a delay in
  securing a permanent placement.

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Lack of Stability

• It was challenging for me because once you get
  used to one person, then you have to change over
  and over, they are creating an unsafe and
  unstable environment for us especially when there
  is already no stability and permanency in our
  lives.

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Lack of Stability

• Tested Lack of Stability with Linear Regression
• Dependent variable Number of Placements
• Independent Variable of Caseworkers in the
  Last Two Years
• Control Variable Length of Time in the Child
  Welfare System
• With every two additional caseworkers a youth has
  had in the past two years, the number of
  placements increases by one, after controlling
  for length of time in CW system. (p.041)

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Loss of Trust

• The youth consistently discussed the devastating
  effect of losing a mentor, or reliable adult, who
  was important in their lives.
• This loss led to a hesitancy to trust other
  adults again.

13
Loss of trust.

• When you keep losing caseworkers it affects your
  ability to tell who you can and cant trust. I
  should be able to trust my caseworker, but I
  cant. How am I supposed to tell who I can and
  cant trust when I am out on my own? For
  instance, people tell me to trust my caseworker
  who is supposed to be trustworthy, but then they
  screw me by leaving. The same people tell me not
  to trust my homies, yet they got my back no
  matter what.

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Loss of trust.

• I had a caseworker for 2 years, from the time I
  entered care. She was the first and last worker
  I liked. It was hard to lose the relationship.
  She had gone the extra mile for me and my
  siblings. She made sure I had clothes, had a
  visit. The next worker was VERY different and it
  affected the way I treat all the workers Ive had
  since. It affects your ability to trust all
  workers.

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Loss of trust.

• I had a deep relationship with one worker and
  could talk with her about everything she had
  answers about things that were important. When
  she left, I shut down, it wasnt the same, it
  didnt feel right. I didnt talk with her the
  new caseworker, tried to stay away from her, and
  deal with my problems by myself.

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Second chance with a new worker.

• Three of the youth identified a sense of relief
  when they were assigned a new worker

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Second chance with a new worker.

• The change was new and fresh because things were
  not going so well with my old worker. This
  worker that I got is there a lot more for me and
  helps me. Plus she is a lot easier to get a hold
  of than the other workers.

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Second chance with a new worker.

• There are too many incompetent, overworked and
  inattentive workers. My old caseworker had too
  much negative to say and was downin me. I felt
  like he tried to discourage me when I was tryin
  to better myself. Finally I got a new worker. It
  is better now.

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JUSTINSEXPERIENCE
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• Youth Suggestions for
• Recruitment, Retention and Engagement of Youth

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Change in Practice Make the transition to new
workers smoother

• When turnover is inevitable, it is important to
  make the transitions transparent and smooth.
• The participants consistently discussed the value
  of keeping the youth fully informed in the
  process.

22
Change in Practice Make the transition to new
workers smoother

• They should make this a smooth transition such
  as bringing the new worker with you on several
  occasions with the child. I think the problem is
  that a child cannot adjust to the new worker
  quickly at the last minute and it may take a lot
  of time before that child opens itself up to that
  worker. Workers who think that the child is not
  opening up to them make wrong assumptions about
  the child.

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Youth suggestions for worker retention

• Congruent with the literature, youth suggested
  many of the same solutions to combat worker
  turnover that have previously been identified
• Increase their pay,
• Lower their caseloads,
• Make sure they know what they are in for and
  committed to working
  with us,
• Treat them with some respect,
• Select better people.

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Youths suggestions for engaging with youth

• Child welfare caseworkers can develop case plans
  with their clients, ask their opinions on what
  services would be most appropriate, be honest
  with them about their options and provide them
  with support to independently make important life
  decisions.
• State agency trainers can utilize youth as
  resources to facilitate training on youth
  culture.
• Child welfare administrators at the state and
  local levels can solicit youths opinions on
  causes of and solutions to system wide issues.

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Youths suggestions for engaging with youth

• Local agency administrators can seek the
  participation of youth during the selection and
  recruitment of child welfare caseworkers.
• Select caseworkers who
• Believe in the potential of youth
• Are caring and supportive
• Are competent about case practice
• Are competent about youth culture

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Youths suggestions for engaging with youth

• Social work researchers can collaborate with
  foster care youth leaders to develop
  participatory research designs that investigate
  the effects of workforce retention on other
  measures of child well being such as permanency,
  bonding, or educational achievement.
• Agencies can create and use groups like Youth In
  Progress to create resources for foster care
  youth (e.g. Need to Know series Handbook for
  Youth in Foster Care)

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Conclusions

• Caseworker turnover affects youth in care Youth
  form bonds with their caseworkers and losing them
  is often quite painful and traumatic.
• Not all worker turnover is harmful Turnover is
  constructive when they receive a new worker who
  is able to more effectively meet their needs. 
• Child welfare agencies need to recruit and retain
  the right workers that engage with youth

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Contact Information

• Sharon Kollar, LMSW
• National Child Welfare Workforce Institute
• University at Albany School of Social Welfare
• Skollar_at_uamail.albany.edu
• Jessica Strolin-Goltzman, PhD
• Yeshiva University
• Wurzweiler School of Social Work
• Strolin_at_yu.edu
• YOUTH IN PROGRESS
• www.youthinprogress.org