![\"Group](\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/02\/Group-shot-with-Jackson.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
February 17, 2023<\/em> \u2014 New York\u2019s dedicated social workers are burnt out, underpaid, feel unsafe at work, and face skyrocketing caseloads \u2013 all while continuing to provide vital care to a patient population that has grown more complex and difficult to serve.<\/p>\n It\u2019s time for change.<\/p>\n They called on the State to address pay inequity by title reallocation; review the potential for a geo pay differential; conduct continuous recruitment exams; look at financial aid programs; and form partnerships for training, education, and safety in the workplace.<\/p>\n It was standing room only as PEF members carried their message to Sen. Robert Jackson, a former PEF member and staffer and now chair of the Senate\u2019s Civil Service and Pensions committee.<\/p>\n A PEF member from Creedmoor Psychiatric Center kicked off the session.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is chronic understaffing,\u201d she said. \u201cWe can\u2019t attract or keep staff. We are dealing with a much harder population and the violence, it\u2019s out of control. We are pushed to push patients out as fast as possible, and they took away the community resources.\u201d<\/p>\n Members shared stories of a faulty pay scale and little opportunity for advancement. Licensed social worker titles begin at grade 18 and can advance to grade 20. Meanwhile, psychologist 2s, who aren\u2019t required to hold a license, start at grade 23.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are highly trained,\u201d a social worker at the Office of Mental Health (OMH) said. Sometimes social workers supervise and sign off on paperwork for psychologists (at OMH), yet they are paid less, she said. \u201cIt\u2019s demoralizing.\u201d<\/p>\n Many social workers are also saddled with large student loans, sometimes living paycheck to paycheck when half their take-home pay goes toward skyrocketing rents. Coupled with the understaffing and complexity of their patient population, many social workers are burnt out.<\/p>\n One PEF member told Sen. Jackson she has had to consider moving on.<\/p>\n \u201cI have a passion for this,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I have to leave what I love to get paid.\u201d<\/p>\n Members also shared with the senator the real impact of understaffing.<\/p>\n \u201cMy caseload is 230,\u201d a member said, and because of that, he can only see his patients once every two months. \u201cIt impacts the continuity of care.\u201d<\/p>\n Sen. Jackson urged social workers to tell their stories \u2013 to write personalized letters, which have more impact than a form letter, and to detail what they face and what they need.<\/p>\n \u201cKeep pushing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n PEF social workers asked lawmakers they met with to help convey their messages to management of the various State agencies that employ social workers, as well as the Department of Civil Service and the Division of Budget, which would ultimately be responsible for changing the structure of the social work title series. They spent much of the day traversing the halls of the Legislative Office Building and the Capitol building, speaking to representatives who were in their offices and dropping off information for those they missed.<\/p>\n The information packets contained a summary of what PEF learned from a survey in October 2022 that focused on assessing working conditions and job satisfaction among social workers.\u00a0 In the survey, more than 70% of the respondents indicated their work location had at least one vacancy; 85% admitted they have considered leaving state service; and 82% cited workload as the reason they considered leaving.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is clear that PEF social workers operate in dangerous environments with chronic vacancies and staff shortages, performing unmanageable workloads with an influx of severely mentally ill and difficult-to-serve individuals who have complex medical and treatment needs,\u201d said PEF President Wayne Spence. \u201cWe need our elected officials to do right by our social workers, so they can support New York\u2019s most vulnerable citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n PEF is asking the State to:<\/p>\n![\"Social](\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/02\/SocialWorker-Sticker.jpg\")
<\/span>That\u2019s the message about 50 PEF social workers conveyed to legislators in Albany on February 14. PEF joined members of the National Association of Social Workers\u2019 New York State chapter on Social Worker Lobby Day to share stories and advocate for solutions.<\/p>\n\n
![\"Grid](\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/02\/Social-Grid.jpg\")
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"