A couple weeks back we highlighted an article which told the story of a California family that fought CPS for the return of their children and ended up being part of a lawsuit against the state. That article used that family’s story to shed light on greater systemic issues with the child welfare system. Some of those issues were recently recognized by grand jury findings regarding San Bernardino County’s Department of Children and Family Services. Perhaps chief among those issues is high turnover among caseworkers, which is a problem in Washington State as well. Such turnover leads to “caseloads far exceeding the national average,” “shoddy documentation practices,” and “a lack of training.” All of these issues combine to work against even the most hard-working and well-intentioned caseworkers. It creates a “snowball effect” because the more turnover there is, the more these other problems arise and the less likely workers are to stay once hired. Some dependency attorneys have heard of turnover in certain Washington State DSHS offices as being close to 90%. Cases benefit immensely from consistency of who is on board, and as evidenced by the recent findings in California, high turnover of social workers is not a problem local to Washington State.
STAY UP TO DATE
Subscribe to our newsletters
FURTHER READING
Latest Blog Posts
Unmarried in Washington? Without the right estate plan, your partner may have no legal rights. Learn how to protect each other with help from a Seattle estate planning lawyer.
Learn how alternative dispute resolution — mediation or arbitration — can help resolve divorce issues in Washington without going to court.
Learn how community property laws, probate, and estate planning affect what you may owe for your deceased spouse's debts in Washington state.
Get book recommendations from a Seattle family law attorney experienced in high-conflict divorce if you're divorcing an asshole.
Hear from an experienced Seattle estate planning attorney how a simultaneous death clause could impact your Washington state estate plan.
Hear from a Seattle family law attorney how and why children often act out during a divorce and what you can do about it.
Learn from an experienced Seattle estate planning lawyer what happens if someone dies owing a debt. Does the debt go away when they die? The final article in a three-part series about probate in Washington state.
Divorce can do many things, including ruin summer camp for your kids if you let it. A Seattle family lawyer explains how not to allow this.
Learn from an experienced Seattle family law how you can navigate a high-asset divorce if you are the low- or non-earning spouse.
Learn from a Seattle estate planning lawyer what the biggest estate planning mistakes are and how to avoid them.