Keywords: Child welfare；Workforce；Worker；Qualifications

1. Introduction

A child welfare system is responsible for making difficult decisions, including determinations of abuse or neglect, or intervening on behalf of children when their caregivers’ ability and/or situation are deemed to put them at risk for abuse or neglect. Child welfare workers are mandated to conduct assessments and provide services for children considered in need of protection and are central in the functioning of child welfare services. Workers are, therefore, considered to be integral to achieving good outcomes for children and their families (National Association of Social Workers, 2013). Although this workforce attended to an estimated 125,281 child maltreatment investigations in Ontario in 2013 (Fallon et al., 2015), little is known about their skills, education, training, qualities, and work environment. Child welfare systems identify what are assumed to be the qualifications and characteristics of an effective worker. Worker qualifications and characteristics are then used in recruitment and capacity building strategies (National Association of Social Workers, 2013; National Child Welfare Workforce Institute, 2015; Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies, 2018). These assumptions have been shaped by a multitude of factors, including human resources (Graef & Hill, 2000), professional standards (National Association of Social Workers, 2013), educational requirements (Jones & Okamura, 2000), and public perception of child welfare work as well as in response to the tragic deaths of children involved with the child welfare system (Office of the Chief Coroner, 2014). Although the child welfare workforce has been subject to the increased standardization and professionalization of the work and training (Parada, Barnoff, & Coleman, 2007), there are few studies that explicitly link worker qualifications or characteristics to good case outcomes.

Upon hire, inpiduals responsible for investigating maltreatment allegations are expected to have several qualifications including a minimum educational degree (Folaron & Hostetter, 2006) and ideally some prior work experience or a demonstrated aptitude or knowledge of the job (Munro, 2011). Further, in order to conduct their job effectively, child welfare systems aim to provide training about how to do the job (National Association of Social Workers, 2013) and a caseload that allows for effective performance of their duties (Bowling, Alarcon, Bragg, & Hartman, 2015). Using data from the Ontario child welfare sector between 1993 and 2013, this study will examine the changing profile of the child welfare workforce and how it corresponds with system changes and family needs.

This is the first Canadian study to examine a provincial child welfare workforce over time, and aims to provide a foundation for future research. This study will address the following research questions: 1) Do the pre- and in-service qualifications of workers reflect the assumptions of a qualified child welfare workforce (i.e., social work degree, experience, trained)?; 2) How have worker qualifications and characteristics changed over time?; and 3) Do child welfare worker training and caseload size trends correspond with system changes?

1.1. The Ontario child welfare system

Child welfare organizations in Canada are provincially or territorially mandated to provide child welfare services. In most provinces, child welfare services are centralized and the government is directly responsible for the delivery of services. The Ontario child welfare system is unique among Canadian provinces and territories. Currently in Ontario, 47 Children’s Aid Societies (CASs) are legislated to provide child welfare services. Although CASs are required to meet provincial standards, follow provincial legislation, and are funded by Ontario’s Ministry of Children and Youth Services, each CAS is governed and operated by an independent Board of Directors and is its own legal entity (Wegner-Lohin, Kyte,&Trocmé, 2014). While CASs in Ontario are independently operated,promoting child safety, well-being, and permanency are the primary goals for the entire province.