(November/December 1998)
In last month's Currents, Chapter Executive Director Dr. Robert Schachter wrote: If we believe in the basic worth of social work, if we believe that social work benefits people, then it is...essential that NASW strive to develop as clear a focus on practice in the employment setting as possible."
On Saturday, September 26, Chapter leaders came together for an all-day retreat to review the Chapter's priorities and to see how practice and employment issues have been addressed, in order to determine how to move forward most effectively in the future.
Board members and committee and task force chairs spent the day pondering how practice and employment is changing; the economics of social work employment; and what NASW can do to address or ameliorate employment problems. They addressed such questions as:
- What is at play that determines what social workers get paid?
What are the perceptions of employers of social workers?
- How much latitude exists for setting salaries given an organization's finite resources?
- Are social workers actually a cost to organizations or are they a cost savings?
- Might social workers, at times, be revenue producers?
In discussing recent changes in social work practice, retreat participants noted:
- An increased isolation of social workers, especially in agencies in which the director is not a social worker;
- A reduction in the quality and quantity of supervision;
- The dismantling of social work departments, with no one to create a unified vision for practice;
- The need for more of a Abusiness perspective@ among social workers in agencies;
- The lack of vision for social work in the community;
- Multidisciplinary settings which require both flexibility and a social work identity;
- The undermining of social work standards due to focus on the bottom line.
The Economics of Practice
The second topic of discussion was the economics of social work practice. Among the ideas put forth:
- The assumption that policy makers can be influenced by economic arguments is important
- At the same time, we need to be clear that some of the politics around this is ideological and no argument will make a difference
- It's an issue of mobilizing power.
- In this era, everything needs to be marketed.
- The need to learn the language of business, and have skills in Amarketing@ services of agencies to communities, recruiting new Acustomers
- Social workers need to think about the outcomes of our services and whether we are helping people move from welfare to work.
- What do we do about employers who continue to hire those with bachelors and associates degrees, because, technically, they are providing a service?
Taking a cue from one Chapter leader who stated that "people need to mobilize their power instead of lamenting the problem," retreat participants came up with a number of suggestions. These included:
- Addressing the distrust in organizations;
- Working toward empowering workers and fostering learning;
- Continuing to put pressure on the regulatory arena;
- Addressing the changing role of practice and education and what social workers need
once they graduate;
- Using union strategies in organizing social workers around working conditions;
- Putting an economic value on our services;
- Doing a better job of addressing outcomes; and
- Telling the stories of what social workers do.
The discussion at the October Board meeting reflected the direction of the retreat. The Board decided that trends in practice and employment should be more specifically identified, in order to prepare social workers and NASW for practice in the 21st century.
It is expected that the Chapter will convene a think tank this winter to identify these trends.
Members are invited to suggest ways to address employment issues or to help identify problems.
Write to: Employment Issues @ NASW, 50 Broadway, NY, NY 10004 or fax to (212) 668-0305.