Retaining Competent Child Welfare Workers: Lessons From Research

Abstract

To determine effective retention strategies that child welfare agencies can implement, the Institute for the Advancement of Social Work Research (IASWR) in collaboration with the University of Maryland School of Social Work’s Center for Families and Institute for Human Services Policy, and with support from the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Human Services Workforce Initiative, undertook a systematic review of research and outcome studies to answer the question: What conditions and strategies influence the retention of staff in public child welfare? Conditions include both personal and organizational factors, and strategies are actions taken by some entity that are targeted to retain staff. A synthesis of results across studies can provide lessons learned that can be used by practitioners, researchers, educators, policy makers, and administrators to take steps to increase the retention of a competent child welfare workforce.