Long hours, low pay and constant turnover: Social services agencies in Virginia struggle to keep staff

["Katie O'Connor", 'Shannon Heckt', 'Charlotte Rene Woods', 'More From Author', 'August', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar'] Virginia Mercury 2018-08-27 00:00:00

During a recent Board of Social Services meeting, Ayers said that the turnover rate for a newly hired family service specialist is 60 percent in the first year. And of those who local departments of social services in Virginia can hire, few last long. The minimum starting salary required by the state for a family services specialist is just $29,930 a year. The Department of Social Services requested a 10 percent increase to the minimum salary ranges last year but the proposal never made it to the governor’s desk. The problem feeds on itself, explained Andrew Crawford, president of the Virginia League of Social Services Executives.