care manager

direct support professional

youth worker

case planner

clinician

Catholic Guardian Services

I worked at Catholic Guardian Services for nearly three years and always maintained a clean record with no issues. While I valued the mission of the organization and the opportunity to make a difference, my experience with how my layoff was handled left me very disappointed.

I was told I was no longer eligible to remain in my role due to ORR “requirements,” but I was never given clear communication or official documentation explaining why. The only letter I eventually received felt more like an internal note than a formal explanation, which made the process feel confusing and unfair.

Another concern was how my paid time off was handled. At the time of separation, I had accrued 59 hours of PTO, 13+ hours of floating time, and 40 rollover hours (over 110 hours total), but I was only paid out for 40. Since my layoff came with almost no notice, I had no chance to use the rest of my earned time. This left me feeling penalized on top of losing my position.

Lastly, I had been told I would be supported in transitioning to another role within the agency, but despite following up and applying for positions, I never received meaningful assistance. After years of service, that lack of support felt discouraging.

In my opinion, CGS needs to improve how it communicates with employees during difficult transitions, handle earned benefits more fairly, and provide stronger support for staff who want to continue contributing to the organization.

My experience at CGS FFT-CW has been stressful to say the least. Upon hiring I had no knowledge of the evidence based model that was in practice and was provided with a 2 1/2 day training. I was told there was an open door policy when requesting assistance, however, I always found during moments of crisis my direct Supervisor was not available to assist me. As more time passed, the documentation required for the program was excessive and I was always a month or two behind with my progress notes. There are constant audit periods which caused many of us to accrue comp time; when it came time to use the comp time management made it difficult to "prove we really accrued time doing the work". In addition ACS holds you accountable for the shortcomings of the clients and required you to be cerebral to problem solve for them. The agency doesn't enforce self care and often forgets they are dealing with ppl; all contacts are circumstantial depending on the level of cooperation from the families. Management was not helpful during times of hardship. I found instead of grooming me to progress in my career, I was being micro managed and constantly being told the areas I lacked as opposed to being nurtured. I've learned the child welfare setting is not suited for me as I enjoyed engaging with the families but not the bureaucracy of it all.

Typical day of work consisted of entering the office a half hour before required start time to review agenda for the day and respond to emails  Upon reviewing day's agenda prioritize and organize days work, inclusive of meetings supervision of staff and documentation which needed to be completed.  Although this is how I attempted to start my day then the emails would begin requesting that I respond to them.  There were always issues that would arise during any given day that would require my immediate attention.  However, typically during the day I would always find time to address my mandates and accomplish the necessary paperwork which was required.  I was a person who came in early and stayed late so that I could get what I needed done.  After five o'clock I would always be able to review what took place during the day and what prioritize for the next.  The hardest part of the job was to accomplish what I had planned for the day.  I learned each day a little bit more about how to be a team leader and how to delegate to coworkers based on their acquired skills.  The most enjoyable part of the job was teaching and sharing what I've learned throughout the years  in the field and empowering families to strive towards their set goals.

Interview/Training
     
     So this company is like the worst ever. Rather work retail to be honest. So I got the interview and the next month I got started. They make you go to a 2 week training ( 9 days) . The training is common sense for the most part and it is no training that relates to what you will be doing in terms of (software, how to write notes, case load) Nothing whatsoever. They do have a day where you go to your location and you follow someone to see how the work is done which was somewhat helpful. The training is all day (9-5) where everyone is bored by 1 (Honestly). There are no raises. So whatever salary you agree to, it's stuck with you for literally the next 5-10 years. No bonuses. 

On the job:

    After the training I sat there for like 3 days without any logon information. When I finally got it, They threw case loads at me and starting demanding paperwork that we had no training on. (9 days for nothing). The co-workers usually help you but it is magically expected that you know how to do this work. 9-5 is not 9-5 with this place. You have to sometimes stay until 6 or even 7. No overtime, just BS comp time. They will tell you that you have to see someone at 4:45 right before you leave and screw your day. Better pray they don't tell you this on a Friday. Find another agency please please please. I understand the passion for children but not in this environment.

A typical day for me consisted of following up on 5 sites I was responsible for and creating punch lists for my staff. I learned and enhanced my skills with regard to floor maintenance (including stripping, waxing, buffing, carpet cleaning), carpentry, basic electrical tasks and light plumbing. I also learned what being part of a management team consisted of and fostered staff growth and maintained morale through weekly meetings. The management team/my co-workers complemented one another well and would frequently collaborate to complete special projects in a timely manner. The most challenging aspect of the position was my transition from custodial worker to management--I now had to supervise people I'd worked side by side with and had a tendency to continue physically laboring more than some say I should have and overextending myself. The most enjoyable part of the job was interacting with staff, vendors, and contractors.

The work itself is very rewarding if you like working with people and reuniting families. But unfortunately upper  management  DO NOT appreciate the work done by case planners. There are some really amazing supervisors that would go the extra mile to help their employees while there are others that would do the absolute opposite. 
There are no raises or bonuses given to the employees, they do not pay overtime. When you are hire you are told that you would be able to take time off when you accumulate comp time but due to the volume of work you can never do so. 
There's such a high turn over of employees that all workers are over the LEGAL amount of cases. 

I would NOT recommend anyone to work for this place. It's not worth your physical or mental health, peace of mind or even your time... this place will consume you.

The job itself is very rewarding since you get to meet the children and their stories. However, it seems like upper management are the biggest children in the company. Most of them are very disrespectful and unprofessional. They have no idea of the stuff that goes on inside of the houses (and believe me when I tell you that you can write a book with all the gossip between the staff), they barely read emails and they definitely don't know how to treat their staff. It's a good place to work if you need experience with children or flexible hours (But beware of the mandated list, because you can easily end up staying for another shift if someone decides to do a "no call, no show", which is pretty common at CGS and apparently has no repercussions). I advice you to look somewhere else if you need money for rent, or a workplace where they respect good employees. 

I had a very disappointing experience with management at this company. There is a strong culture of micromanagement and a clear lack of trust in employees. Leadership appears untrained and unprepared to effectively support their teams.

There is little to no support provided—employees are often left to navigate challenges on their own. Additionally, unprofessional behavior is common among managers, including gossiping about staff and showing blatant favoritism. Certain employees are given free rein, while others are unfairly scrutinized.

Unfortunately, there is also a noticeable lack of appreciation and respect for staff contributions. In some cases, the behavior from management could be described as harassing or dismissive.

Overall, I would not recommend this company. There are better opportunities elsewhere where professionalism, support, and respect are valued.

This is my personal experience from this company having only been on board 5 months. I would NOT under any circumstances recommend this job to anyone! Management is completely unorganized and unprofessional, leading from the manager at the house I work at up to people in HR department. They hardly ever answer the phone in order for you to speak to someone and the likely-hood of them calling you back in a timely manner if at all is slim to none! I love what I do but just not with this company, they're an absolute NIGHTMARE. You don't always get treated with respect by superiors and only being paid minimum wage for what we have to endure on a daily basis from some residents is honestly not worth it especially when management is not backing you. I'm currently looking for another job so that I can hurry up and quit this place.

Information learned was valuable. However there is no respect for your personal time or your family. Expectations are unrealistic and if the program fails, you are at fault. 
On a typical day you arrive at the office to check phone messages, emails, write a couple of notes, possibly take lunch if its allowed. Then head to the field to conduct school visits, home visits, or accompany the client to any appointment they have. If they client is not home then you have to reschedule for that same week. 
Management is not supportive. They tell you to get the work done however you need to get it done. Even if it means working on your day off or at home. 
The hardest part of the job is getting the clients to keep their appointments. 
The enjoyable part of the job is working with the families.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Care manager 7 salaries reported	$51,143 per year
Direct support professional 18 salaries reported	$18.17 per hour
Youth worker 10 salaries reported	$21.50 per hour
Case planner 22 salaries reported	$56,955 per year
Clinician 7 salaries reported	$69,771 per year

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