Ethical dilemma, pressure, lack of staff: the degree of exhaustion of social workers in the public network is today “incomparable”, warns a researcher from Quebec, who points in particular to the Barrette reform.
“Exhausted and mentally challenged social workers tell us: they lack the resources to do their job,” says Mélanie Bourque, full professor at the Department of Social Work at the Université du Québec en Outaouais (UQO), revealed during an exclusive interview with Le Devoir the preliminary results of a study to be published.
During 2022, Ms. Bourque and colleagues conducted a study involving around sixty social workers from across Quebec. It carried out a first one in 2016-2017 as part of the health system reform set up by former Liberal Minister Gaétan Barrette.
The researcher wanted to keep his finger on the pulse. “We found it in a worse condition than in the upheaval of 2016 and 2017,” she emphasizes. The need is the same everywhere. »
Several participants also broke down in tears during the study, adds Mylène Barbe, a researcher and PhD student in social work at the University of Montreal.
According to Mélanie Bourque, the Barrette reform has crystallized a very hierarchical management of the network, creating superstructures – the CIUSSS and the CISSS – “where the field, that is, the workers, are not involved in decision-making”. Social workers in particular are confronted with a “constant ethical dilemma”, she complains. “We force them to go in different directions in their types of interventions and for them this completely challenges their professional autonomy. »
“Under pressure” and in competition
In research interviews, Mélanie Bourque and Mylène Barbe often heard about reporting “under pressure”.
“With the new youth protection management, workers can spend 50% or more of their time taking responsibility when there is a shortage of staff on site,” says Ms. Bourque. But social workers want to be with the population, she continues.
Many denounce being put in competition with each other by their superiors, says the study leader. “We tell them, ‘How come your colleague is more efficient and interviews more per day than you?’ It’s an incredible pressure on everyone involved.”
She notes that human suffering is difficult to quantify.
Lack of professional support
Another problem is the lack of professional support that new social workers receive, says Mylène Barbe. Managers have teams that are too big, adds Mélanie Bourque.
Many experienced professionals choose to retire early because of these unsustainable conditions, notes Ms. Bourque. “All this know-how going means those who are arriving have no support. It’s kind of a vicious circle. Some social workers also choose to change jobs, she adds. “You know that, for example, for people who are in need, a regular turnover of employees is not beneficial. But at some point I would say they save their skin. »
Ultimately, many social workers were worried about the population, reports the UQO professor. “They tell us, ‘A family is leaving my office and I’m afraid the pot will explode in the evening because they need services, but I can’t offer them any. And I can’t ‘move into’ it because there’s no more space.” »
According to Ms. Bourque, these problems existed before the COVID-19 pandemic, but like many other places, they made the situation worse.
At Le Devoir’s request, the office of Social Services Minister Lionel Carmant said it would not comment on the study before it was published. Same response from Department of Health and Human Services.
“We drive straight into the wall”
On Monday, the Parti Québécois and Québec solidaire both denounced the erosion of social workers’ working conditions.
“Today we are seeing the devastating effects of the massive centralization of the healthcare network, the under-representation of professionals in social services and the budget cuts of recent years,” said PQ MP Joël Arseneau. Social services have long been underfunded, while current needs are dire, he continued. “We’re going straight into the wall while the government denies it. »
Social workers must be given adequate resources to prevent their attrition from the profession, argued Christine Labrie, MNA for Québec solidaire and responsible for the social services files. “The hardship reported by the study’s authors echoes what I hear all too often from workers: they feel hurt by the system and a sense of being unable to respect the standards of their job code,” she said.
The Quebec Liberal Party declined to comment on the preliminary findings of the investigation.