Lack of enough caseworkers in Wayne County Children & Youth Services (CYS) has reached the point where a $5,000 sign-on bonus is being offered by the county for new hires.
The Wayne County commissioners adopted a temporary policy on Oct. 24 to address the high vacancy rate for both the intake and ongoing units in CYS. To be eligible for the bonus, the new employee must be there a year.
"In Children & Youth, our intake over there should be 10 people working in that department. Right now we only have two," Commissioner James Shook said. "On the ongoing side, there is supposed to be 10, we only have three. We have a very big vacancy rate there."
He said that people who are working in those departments now are carrying more of the caseload because they can't share it among other staff members who are absent or not available.
"The sign-on bonuses are supposed to draw people in to get those positions, filled," Shook said. "Even though the staff positions are down, the caseloads are not."
Commissioner Jocelyn Cramer said that the vacancy rate is not new, and the county has been trying different ways to recruit caseworkers.
"There are some incredible people over things doing incredible work for this community, but we are not attracting the level of people that we need…" Cramer said.
"It is a difficult position and stressful as well. We need the find the right person," Shook stated. Commissioner Chairperson Brian Smith added that the state mandates that the county fills these positions.
Eighty percent of the cost for the bonuses will be reimbursed by the state. Shook noted that the funds the county will expend are in the current CYS budget because they have a surplus due to being understaffed.
Applications are available at the county website and can also be obtained at Human Resouces at the courthouse. The county makes career presentations at local colleges and schools and hosts job fairs. There were no takers for CYS, however, at the recent job fair.
The website describes the position, in part, as conducting interviews to obtain information from clients and their family members; providing information about agency programs; assisting families in formulating plans; managing the caseload and keeping records; and providing family services, with supervision.
County Clerk Andrew Seder said there are over 30 vacancies across the board in the Human Services Department, of which CYS is a part.
CYS employee honored
At the same meeting, the commissioners honored Linda Huffman, CYS employee, for 20 years of service. Executive Director Janine Latsch hailed Huffman for her "kindness, support, honesty and dedication to what we do every day" and said she has a "smile that is incredibly calming on difficult days and can light up the room on really good days." Huffman takes care of CYS employees and takes on any project in stride, Latsch said.
"I have felt blessed to be here. I love what I do, I love coming to work every day," Huffman told the commissioners. "I work with great people and Janine is simply amazing in her role; it's a good team."
For information about Wayne County CYS, visit waynecountypa.gov/156/Children-Youth . For information about job opportunities in CYS call Paula Wehrmann at 570-253-4262 or visit the county website. The CYS offices are located at the Park Street Complex.
Peter Becker has worked at the Tri-County Independent or its predecessor publications since 1994. Reach him at pbecker@tricountyindependent.com or 570-253-3055 ext. 1588.
This article originally appeared on Tri-County Independent: Wayne County offers $5,000 bonuses to help address C&Y caseworker shortage
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