Frances Mortenson, Teri Zenner, Lara Sobel, Brenda Yeager,
Charles Keith Springle, Stephanie Moulton
These are all social workers who have been nearly murdered
or successfully murdered on the job by their clients. Most recently, the media has presented Lara
Sobel’s death on August 7, 2015. She was
killed by a disgruntled client outside of her office. Although this murder has gotten some recent
attention, the media presence of most violent acts against social workers are
typically miniscule.
Social work is one of riskiest, low paying jobs that gets
little-to-no recognition. Social workers
go into the homes of people who may be
psychiatrically unstable, members of gangs, sex offenders, or even people who
have previously been convicted of murder.
Most social workers believe (rightfully so) that most of their clients
are inherently good and have made or are trying to make positive changes in
their lives, however, there is still risk to visiting these homes, as well as
meeting in small, private offices alone with them.
In general, people are unpredictable. Throw any of the above factors into the
equation, and you’ve got someone whose behaviors can follow any path.
So, what is the value that society has placed on social
workers? How much are we worth? How much are we compensated for the increased
risks we take every day? The median
salary for social workers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, is
$44,200 per year. Honestly, as a
supervisor of non-profit programs for the past 5 years, I can tell you that
this is actually on the higher side of salaries that employees in this field
make. Some social workers make less than
$30,000 per year! When I first started
my career in mental health in 2008, I was paid $2,000 above the poverty
level. Most social workers and mental health
professionals will continue to risk their safety despite the salary because they believe in the work
they do with their clients. So, if
professionals will sacrifice a low salary in order to help people, what else
will we, as a society, do for them to stay safe?
Firstly, we need to determine what can be done to decrease
the risks involved. In March 2009, the
Teri Zenner Social Worker Safety Act was introduced to Congress. The act would “authorize the Secretary of Health and Human
Services, through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration, to award grants to states to provide safety measures to social
workers and other professionals working with violent, drug-using, or other
at-risk populations. Authorize such grants to be used to provide or support:
(1) the procurement and installation of safety equipment, including
communications systems to assist agencies in locating staff, and technical
assistance and training for safety communications; (2) training exercises for
self-defense and crisis management; (3) facility safety improvements; (4)
provision of pepper spray for self-defense; (5) training in cultural competency
and on strategies for de-escalating a situation that could turn volatile; (6)
training to help workers who work with mentally ill communities and who need
help coping; and (7) educational resources and materials to train staff on
safety and awareness measures. Direct the Secretary to establish guidelines for
assuring the cost-effectiveness and quality of the safety measures funded.” Although well-intentioned, the bill was never
voted on and died in Congress by 2010.
There
have also been suggestions of passing laws to make violent acts against social
workers an automatic felony—giving harsher punishment may make clients think
harder about their actions.
Until
legislation is passed, there are other important factors to the safety of
social workers. From experience, I can
say the most effective and imperative safety precaution is SUPERVISORY
SUPPORT. I’m amazed at how few
supervisors support their staff members, even if they do most of their work in
the community. A staff member should be
fully informed of a client’s history and most recent mental status prior to
being asked to see them. This includes
if the client has a criminal history, history of sexual assault or abuse,
history of dealing drugs, etc. A staff
member should always have the right to refuse to see a client if they are
uncomfortable—and no staff member should ever be formally or informally
penalized for not seeing a client who makes them uncomfortable. Additionally, supervisors have the
responsibility to train their staff on safety precautions, including assessment
of environmental factors (What’s the neighborhood like? Does the social worker know the exact address
of the visit? Have there been any recent
events in the neighborhood that may increase risk, such as homicides,
robberies, etc.?), use of mobile phones (Making sure they are fully charged and
working before going into the community), and safety measures to take when in
the client’s home.
Supervisors
also have the responsibility of pointing out to a staff member when they may be
in danger and/or minimizing the actual risk of situations. I have, on many occasions, reminded staff
members in my clinical supervisions with them of situations which may pose
risks—a client whose partner is abusing them, a client who has been engaging in
sex work in their home, a client who always has a group of people in their home—and
I recommend that they assess the situation prior to home visits and/or arrange
to meet the client elsewhere in the community.
Sometimes staff members will say, “It’s fine. I know my client” or “I can handle it.” It is important to allow them to make their
own decisions, but a supervisor should always present the costs and potential
risks involved in going forward with the visit.
Explaining that it is not a matter of not knowing the client or not
being able to handle stressful situations—it’s about safety. And safety for clients and staff is the
number one priority in this field.
What
do you think a social worker’s value is?
What have your experiences been like as a social worker? Leave a comment below.
Posts
