AUGUSTA, Maine (WMTW) - The labor union representing workers at the state's Office of Child and Family Services has released a list of 10 recommendations to strengthen and improve child and family services in Maine.
The recommendations by the Maine State Employees Association are based on a survey of 45 caseworkers and case aides at the Department of Health and Human Services.
The one-page document is titled "Our Vision for Child and Family Services." It includes recommendations such as reducing caseloads, hiring additional support staff, cutting down on duplicate paperwork, providing workers with adequate technology and reassessing the foster parent certification process.
In a press release, Peggy Rice, the union's retiree director, said, "Our recommendations come from the heart and souls of front-line Maine OCFS workers who go to work every day focused entirely on doing everything within their power to keep children safe."
In the survey, all 45 workers said they were concerned about the size of their work load and the majority said they did not have adequate administrative support staff in their office. Most workers also reported skipping a 15-minute break every day and over half said they skip their lunch break at least once a week.
The recommendations from the union come in the wake of the death of two girls in Maine's child protective system, Kendall Chick, 4, and Marissa Kennedy, 10. Their deaths sparked an investigation by the legislature's Government Oversight Committee and the Maine Office of Program Evaluation and Government Accountability.
