case manager

clinical therapist

licensing specialist

director

foster care worker

SAFY

The social work field is always over worked and understaffed, but this job was more than just that. Each client assigned you are required to meet with twice a month for an hour, once in the foster home and once out of the foster home (school, office etc.) This includes also attending meeting with DCBS, schools, and other agencies as needed. Initially you are told you can just flex your hours and adjust your schedule as needed, but I found myself working 60hr weeks often. It was not uncommon for me to start my day around 830am and continue working late into the evening. There were many nights I worked till 10pm due to sessions and paperwork afterwards. Each week has 4 office days and 1 work from home day, but you are constantly on the road driving between home sessions. In 8 months my car had almost 10,000 more miles. My work life balance was non-existent, and this took a major toll on my mental and emotional health. You are told your caseload is 25 clients maximum, but that isn't accurate. When you are at the client max, you are expected to just continue taking on clients due to lack of staffing. You are compared to other case managers in the state, hearing they more clients than you and that you should be able to handle it. Having a supervisor compare me to other case managers in this regard did not sit well as each additional client takes a lot of work and time. I saw 2 case managers and 1 therapist leave within the time frame that I worked there, and job turnover is extremely high. The hardest part of the job wasn't working with clients or families, but instead dealing with management. You are micromanaged in every single thing you do, with very little positive feedback. This became a huge stress factor as I was constantly questioned and interrogated for every little thing. Good example, a client went to use the restroom; I checked an email while I was waiting for them on my work phone, and immediately I was sent an email asking about why I was not in session and on my phone. Any extra 5min I had I would be checking my email as I was constantly getting updates/responses that I needed to stay on top of. Getting that kind of feedback constantly really starts to wear on you. Supervision was weekly, and there were many instances where I felt like I was being manipulated by my superior. Overall it was an extremely unhealthy environment.

The best part of the job without a doubt is the clients themselves! Working with foster youth is so special, and the kiddos are the best part of your day! It was an amazing experience working with so many different personalities and this really helped grow my skills as a clinician. The co-worker support is also really beneficial, and you feel like they have your back. Fellow case-managers and therapists understand the stress, and it helps to have others you can vent to or laugh with. You do get paid mileage and are provided with a company phone. 


SAFY is a safe space where everyone is welcome. The office culture is diverse and inclusive. I'm not just saying that... it's true and it's posted on the front door. So far, I have learned that what I thought was social work, is not all there is to the industry. There are companies out there that genuinely care and do focus on the clients. Burnout is a part of social work but being here feels like a breath of fresh air in that there really are people that remain professional and utilize the ethics taught in school and the compassion that should be present in all human beings. 

Once trained, a typical day of works consists of meeting with foster families to provide psychoeducation to the foster parents while also teaching basic living skills to the foster child. It is our job to also make sure that our documentation is Medicaid compliant and that we have proven the medical necessity of our services. We also attend meetings at schools and sometimes accompany a child to the doctor's office or stay with them at the hospital. We are typically on call every fifth week. Meetings are held at the office regularly, but the majority of your day is spent in your car. We are reimbursed by the mile; at the highest rate I have seen. You are able to plan your schedule according to the needs of your clients and yourself.  It is our job at SAFY to educate and advocate for the needs of these precious foster children and the amazing parents that work hard to make the world a better place. 

The hardest part of the job is dealing with outside agencies such as DHR. The best part of the job is seeing the smiling face of a foster child that has been adopted into their forever home. You can know that although difficult at times, you will be making a difference at SAFY.

My message to management: Keep up the good work! I have never worked anywhere like this where I'm educated, trained, heard, and appreciated as much as I am here at SAFY. Everyone has been so good to me. My supervisor is knowledgeable, patient, and understanding. Our trainers are competent, concise, and make learning fun. Our CEO really impressed me because he genuinely cares about our clients and employees. I hope to stay here for a long time. SAFY has really impressed me.


This job is very stressful. Peer reviews were time consuming and limited supervisors responsibility of oversight of case managers that were in need of training. This was a salaried position; there were no stipulations in the contract saying that there was a minimum number of hours to work each week, yet companty expected at least 40 hours. This is only an issue because there are weeks (most weeks) where 50 plus hours were required and I worked 7 days a week making visits and completing paperwork. The distribution of cases was unfair as those that were “less competent” had lower caseloads and were receiving the same amount of pay are their competent counterparts having much more cases to juggle at the same time. Manager was unfair during employee evaluation, raises were not given when they were supposed to be, it was nearly impossible to use flex time to help level off all the overtime needed to complete job to required standard (time frames, etc.). Paperwork for initial visits took hours to complete and were promptly due. Cases were assigned often and without regard to current caseload or obligations. This job was the embodiment of “overworked and underpaid”!

My typical day at work includes phone calls and emails to potential foster parents, community partners and team members, meetings scheduled well in advance, and event planning. At SAFY, I have learned the importance of collaboration. There is very little done that does not involve another team member here. Admittedly, we sometimes find excuses to co-work. I have a huge amount of respect for my leadership team. They would not ask anything of me that they were not willing to do themselves. They are always willing to offer support. The workplace culture in my office is positive. There is open dialogue and new ideas are welcomed. The hardest part of the job is realizing there are things outside of our control including DCBS, state policies and issues specific to children in foster care. It doesn't always seem fair and we do get frustrated. The most enjoyable part of the job is seeing the foster parents and children in person. It is one thing to read or see a film about a child in foster care growing and thriving in a foster family and another thing to witness it. I also love adoptions!

I thoroughly stand behind the mission of SAFY, but the leadership in Alabama, specifically the Executive Director sucks the joy and purpose out of this job. She has unreasonable expectations and sits on a pedestal that she feels entitles her to not have to get out and do the work. Instead, the leadership and staff are left to carry the weight of each other. And when her direct reports are drowning and asking for assistance or compensation for the extra work, she tells them to suck it up and do the job, while she goes home at 4pm every night and doesn't work on weekends.

Corporate knows the problems in Alabama, but, doesn't do anything about it. Staff are afraid to speak up about their concerns and problems with the ED because they know that she holds grudges and will eventually take it out on them.

She creates an environment that pits leaders against each other and creates drama. She uses fear and intimidation with staff. She does not genuinely care about the people that work for her, but cares only about the bottom line.

SAFY as a whole is a great organization and it's mission and values are things I fell in love with. At the end of the day, however, I could not continue to work under the ED of Alabama.

I thoroughly stand behind the mission of SAFY, but the leadership in Alabama, specifically the Executive Director sucks the joy and purpose out of this job. She has unreasonable expectations and sits on a pedestal that she feels entitles her to not have to get out and do the work. Instead, the leadership and staff are left to carry the weight of each other. And when her direct reports are drowning and asking for assistance or compensation for the extra work, she tells them to suck it up and do the job, while she goes home at 4pm every night and doesn't work on weekends.

Corporate knows the problems in Alabama, but, doesn't do anything about it. Staff are afraid to speak up about their concerns and problems with the ED because they know that she holds grudges and will eventually take it out on them.

She creates an environment that pits leaders against each other and creates drama. She uses fear and intimidation with staff. She does not genuinely care about the people that work for her, but cares only about the bottom line.

SAFY as a whole is a great organization and it's mission and values are things I fell in love with. At the end of the day, however, I could not continue to work under the ED of Alabama.

This was the most unprofessional place I have ever worked. The management treats each other poorly and the staff even worse. Management lacks common sense and basic empathy for others. They are constantly on a power trip and competing with one another. Management will bully and nitpick at workers they do not like in order to usher them out the door. 

Foster parents can get away with so much because SAFY needs "bodies in beds" to make money. While there are many foster parents who genuinely care about the children and their emotional healing from trauma, many are just in it for the money. The agency has an overall poor reputation with CCDCFS, and rightfully so. 

The most positive experience I had was with my coworkers and with the kids. Due to feeling like they are left to fend for themselves by management, coworkers support one another with navigating the copious amount of paperwork and strategies to make the job bearable. The kids can be very fun to work with and often have much potential to heal from their trauma.

SAFY is a great organization that places the needs of the youth and the families they care for in our community, first. No organization is perfect yet our CEO personally strives to find creative ways to improve our working environment while not hurting the bottom line. He has a management team, that mirrors his perspective of ensuring that each individual's concern is heard. Working hours are based around a 9 - 5 schedule, however, there are times that in order to meet the needs of our clientele we must work outside that time frame. The hard part is the working hours, the heart-wrenching situations that children are in and keeping up with the demands of the position, as it changes daily. The enjoyable part is knowing that at the end of the day, we have contributed to making our community better, by placing a traumatized child into a loving home while that child is healing and hopefully will their parents are improving their situation. It is also working for an organization that truly cares about their staff just as much as they do about the clients they serve. At SAFY, it is not just lip service and a nice pat on the back, they don't mind placing it in our paycheck also.

The Cleveland office is crumbling around them.
10 people have resigned since 1/2017. Services are operating with a skeleton crew and all are over worked and unsupported. More staff are on their way out the door.
Recent management changes and philosophy states a teamwork mentality but the actual style in punitive and this creates an unsupportive work environment. 
Staff are extremely overloaded with double and triple caseloads. 
There have been no replacements for the more recent exodus of Case Coordinators and there are only 4 left out of the typical 8 positions. Staff are very stressed with none of the management stepping up to assist. 
A lot can be said about the stability of an office with so many good staff leaving. There will be more staff leaving.
Trust me when I say this-you will regret accepting a job at the Cleveland office. What was once a respected agency in the community is now a disappointment to be a part of.

SAFY is a great organization to work for. Although the monetary compensation is substandard, it is incredibly rewarding. The management of SAFY was a joy for me to work with, bringing both competency and approachability. Many a time my supervisors allowed me to flex my schedule around my personal responsibilities, allowing me to excel in my roles as employee and family man. 

SAFY conducted multiple professional training session on a variety of topics, none more often as their adopted approach to therapeutic intervention, Emotional Regulatory Healing (ERH). SAFY did an incredible job training all clinical personnel in such topics. 

The hardest part of the job for me was the administrative duties imposed by medicade/medicare to ensure both legitimacy as an organization and clinically necessary care. 

Overall, SAFY is an incredible organization to work for, especially if you are attempting to get you "foot in the door" in the mental/behavioral health field.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Case manager 30 salaries reported	$48,098 per year
Clinical therapist 12 salaries reported	$59,375 per year
Licensing specialist 8 salaries reported	$53,300 per year
Director 4 salaries reported	$74,875 per year
Foster care worker 4 salaries reported	$44,713 per year

Working at SAFY: Company Overview and Reviews

SAFY

SAFY Ratings

Popular jobs at SAFY

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected