Ambitious Recruiting Adds More Caseworkers to Help Families

Trying to turn the tide on a national workforce crisis in child welfare, Franklin County Children Services led an ambitious recruiting effort in 2023 and added more than 165 new employees to our Team FCCS.

“It was really an all-hands-on deck type situation that we all pitched in to help solve the hiring crisis,” said Maree Whitlow, FCCS director of Human Resources, whose team led a hiring strategy that she believes gave the agency an edge despite national challenges.

The pandemic set off an unprecedented churn in the entire labor market, with peaks in the “Great Resignation” in late 2021 and 2022 when many workers quit their jobs because of perceived low pay, no opportunities for advancement, or feelings of disrespect.

Add to that, national studies showed that almost half of child welfare staff leave their jobs within two years, and schools of Social Work are reporting drops in enrollment, which means the pipeline for future child welfare workers is also shrinking.

To meet this recruitment challenge, Ms. Whitlow says the HR team hosted 12 on-site hiring events; 8 college campus visits; 20 job fairs and requests for appearances on college campuses; and 30 local evening events to meet people in their community.

“Finding ways to meet people where they are is a significant boost to the recruiting process,” said Ms. Whitlow. “Not only did we increase our presence by going out to meet with community partners, universities, and other hiring entities, we also hosted on-site hiring events to give applicants an opportunity to interview and begin the hiring process immediately.”

Of the more than 165 new employees hired over the first ten months of the year this year, 115 were Child Welfare Caseworkers, which represents an amazing 38% increase in the total number of CWC’s hired compared to the year before.

That puts the agency’s current caseworker vacancy rate just below 7%, based on preliminary counts by administrators. By comparison, our counterparts in Cuyahoga County have seen an increase in their caseworker vacancy rate, which rose from 26% in 2022 to 29% in 2023.

Supporting these new caseworkers - and contributing to efforts to increase the percent of newly hired caseworkers who remain with the agency for at least 12 months - our Direct Service teams now have a heightened focus on onboarding and training, with the launch of casework mentors in each of our direct service areas.

To address pay equity across all positions, the FCCS leadership team implemented hiring and retention bonuses and successfully collaborated with labor partners to build structured pay increases through the Collective Bargaining Agreement. 

It’s all part of a strategic priority to recruit, develop, and retain a strong workforce in all areas of the agency, added Ms. Whitlow. Every member and every position on the FCCS Team is seen as a child welfare professional and adds to a culture in which each employee feels safe, supported, respected, and valued.

JOIN TEAM FCCS:
FCCS offers a hiring bonus up to $1,500; remote work and flexible work schedules are available; up to 100 percent tuition reimbursement and a college loan repayment plan. For current job openings and how to apply, visit our website at www.fccs.us or click here to get current job openings. 


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