child protection specialist

human resources specialist

service assistant

registered nurse

tax auditor

State of Kansas

An absolute joke.  "Job title says"  Industrial Maint. Mechanic. Job description lists you working on an impressive amount of equipment - I thought that sounded interesting, awesome and perfect for learning a lot more about equipment that I knew of, but either had little or no real experience with. "Job actually entails" - hanging up whiteboards in peoples offices, hanging up tv's in offices, changing light bulbs, plunging and snaking toilets, ( which is actually a normal maint. task, and no one likes it, but that part was expected and ok) looking at dozens of equipment PM's that were regarded mostly as a joke and a nuisance and...   and moving on....Depending upon summer help availability you may do a lot of mowing and weed eating.( Which was fine to me personally, and I liked it, but not every maint. person does; and depending upon their job description they may have a valid complaint if they don't ) You will OFTEN be called upon to move furniture for the office workers, then haul much or all of it to your maint. shop where it joins the jumbled pile of previous furniture that you can't throw away or put somewhere else. Your boss cannot tell anyone no so you will be doing this A LOT. The maintenance shop is almost unusable. Old parts  
 ( kept for whatever reason, or maybe they just didn't make it to the trash; and who knows if they are any good, and do you want to waste the time and effort finding out- are mixed in with new parts, and boxes of hardware and loose components and partial assemblies off of equipment and loose hardware and screws and nuts and bolts and nails and empty boxes and ...yeah... An unholy mess: you could barely find a spot to lay a piece of equipment on a workbench to work on it due to the mess of tools, parts, supplies and misc. hardware covering almost the entire bench. ( let's just say entire shop and be done with it) As a maintenance guy, have I ever been guilty of not putting everything away after a job, or been guilty of adding to the clutter- setting a handful of assorted hardware down on the bench or a shelf and meaning to sort it out and put it away properly later ?  Good God Yes, hundreds of times- we all ( ok almost all) do it when we get busy and we tell ourselves we will get back to it later in the day, or tomorrow or when it gets less busy or... And we think we mean it, and many times we do have good intentions. Of course I have. But you can tell this has been going on for years. I won't mention what happened ( or failed to happen) when us maint. guys took it upon ourselves to try and reorganize and clean it up. Lastly- have you ever been in the military, or worked a govt. job of any type ? If so you know the standard asin*ne bureaucracy. I have seen it first in my military service, then in a Fed govt. job and then this place. Combine the military with the State of Kansas govt. in this job and you have a delightful combination of    
" we can't get anything done, and we really don't care." When you still haven't gotten your CAC card ( required to even log onto a pc on the job) at the 7 month mark, you will have been the victim of this mind numbing ineptitude for a few months already. ( i just remembered this - I had to schedule my own orientation at this place - that was during the first week and already this was like the third sign that this job was going to be a doozy)  You will have talked to your supervisor, most assuredly at least several times, who will profess to have no clue about what to do, or whom to contact. You will have e - mailed  and called at least several people who will tell you either that they have no idea or they no longer perform that duty or to    e - mail or call someone else who will be out on vacation or sick or retired or moved away or...  when they get back- if they are coming back, they will be annoyed that you are bothering them- and they will tell you they have no idea what you need to do or who can help you, or maybe to e - mail Humpty Dumpty over at such and such office and he should be able to help you...
I will say that my co- workers were awesome guys. They were just as sick of the mess of ineptitude and " nothing works and no one cares" too, but much more patient than I; and some were determined to stick it out and hope for change. Our, sort of , working foreman was a heck of a good guy too. He had a tremendous heart and would have done anything for you. Those guys made the job enjoyable in that respect and I do miss them despite all of the above. And quite a few of the people in the offices ( military and civilian both) seemed like good people, many engaged in and perpetuating the mindless govt. drone syndrome that infuriated us worker bees - but still seemed like decent people that were just caught up in the machine too.



A typical day includes a tremendous amount of paperwork, filling out forms to be tracked by the state and federal government to continually find better ways to utilize the resources available to the public that we provide services to. Completing searches on incoming reports and completing investigations on children and families in need. Attending court hearings, and various meetings with community partners to coordinate services for our clients. I have learned a great deal about human nature and a variety of ways to solve problems and work with individuals. I have had a mostly positive interaction with my immediate supervision/management team. They have provided pertinent information to make me and my work more successful. I have been provided with very decent leadership and a great team of individuals to work with side by side on a day to day basis. Our immediate workplace culture is mostly very supportive of everyone. We are a pretty tight net group of individuals and depend on each other to get the job done. We look out for each other. The hardest part of the job is not having enough resources to go around most of the time. We are very limited in our choices of service providers to refer our clients to and sometimes that makes it nearly impossible to find and provide the services necessary to assist people in order for them to be successful with their own life challenges. The most enjoyable part of the job is knowing that we do sometimes create positive changes in the lives of people that we provide services to and they do go on to be productive and successful in their own lives.

Supervising a large caseload of offenders whom have been placed on (conditional) probation in lieu of serving their sentences in jail. Most days consisted of meeting with offenders to conduct probation intakes, ensuring that they were meeting the court's requirements, including mental health/drug alcohol treatment, submitting to random urinalysis, etc. Additionally, significant time spent in court (including meeting with judges and attorneys), providing thorough case management, which also entailed investigating the probationer, as well as associates, criminal background history, and sometimes completing interstate compact cases (offender has been convicted of a crime in one state, but wishes to move to another state for supervision), etc.

A plethora of information and experience was gained through working in this chosen career; from how the judicial system works to what it takes to generate a solid working relationship with individuals from different community organizations. Although I thoroughly loved being a Court Services Officer (probation officer), at the time, I struggled with a solid work-family life balance. My children were much younger at the time, and I was torn between my often stressful position, and maintaining a successful home dynamic.

The agency struggles getting people hired and has a hard time retaining employees. The people who make the rules and policies are so far removed from the work that is actually done that their expectations are far more than what you can ever expect to achieve. This leaves most workers feeling bad about themselves and their work. The courts, Police, schools, and everyone else expects DCF to have a wand and fix everything and take no responsibility. It's a thankless job. The new Kansas Practice Model they use has a long way to go before it can be utilized to the best ability for this agency and the clients served. The agency who teaches this model worked long term with clients and it is tailored and geared towards those types of relationships. We duplicate our work several times in the process and often struggle to see practical usage for many of the tools they use, especially the system they created for us. 

The people who I work with are amazing. This is the best thing about the job. They truly care about the children and want to keep families together if it is safe to do so. The extra work they put in day in and day out to keep children in the home safety is inspiring.  The jobs here are highly dictated by legislation and politicians who have no idea what we do and hardly give pay raises. The governor has fought for raises recently but compared to the work done it still isn't enough to get quality workers and retain them. The contractors the state pays pays more than the state does. 

The job title is misleading, counseling is a tiny part of the job. They should change it to case manager, because that is what you will be doing for the majority of the day. It is tiring engaging clients, many of whom are repeat clients and only what services and not employment. A large portion of clients have substance use issues and they drop off constantly. This isn't unique to VR, but all social service jobs. The few years I have been here, I have had multiple managers, even though they require VR counselors to have Masters degree, a manager was hired with just a bachelors.

If you don't have a degree in Rehabilitation counseling then you will have to take extra courses, within three years. Rehabilitation counseling is a dying field; not to many people have degrees in it. Social work is a more common degree. If you have taken classes in social fields, then you probably will be bored out of your mind taking the classes. The admin requires you to go through a lot of hopes to take the classes, you have to request a stipend from the school or request VR admin to pay for it. They covered the cost of the class, but wouldn't cover the books. This, I felt was ridiculous considering VR pays for clients books and school supplies all of the time, but won't pay for required books for staff.

In my opinion it is a starter job. It just isn't worth the stress. VR admin is constantly changing staff, office rules, and policies. VR admin tells you they are supportive, but they focus is on numbers (not unique to any job). The pay of $20 an hour, is just not enough for the stress of dealing with management and a high caseload. 

I worked at the lansing correctional facility as a correctional officer for almost a full year and I have to say of all the jobs and positions I have held this job was by far the best I have had. I never knew a career field with excellent co-workers and supervisors and excellent benefits and a community of law enforcment officers. The pay is great for the state in comparison to other states except MO correctional officers get more overtime pay and can make a lot more money. Now the interesting catch is that due to the fact that I was fired under unfavorable circumstances the upper senior managment dosent actually give out very many second chances and believes in strict discipilnary standards and they were not willing to give me another chance. And then I found out that after I had been interviewed shortly after I had left to get drug tested they decided to stab me in the back and tresspass me from the facility. None of us is perfect but some ppl have long memories of your performance and in my opinion it still wouldnt matter if there was a change in Senior leadership that would allow me back. It just didnt make sense for them to tresspass me after I had very recently interviewed and the real kicker is they didnt even tell me in writting that I had been served a tresspass notice. Still I met very important and key ppl to me that I will always remember and treasure. Just wish senior managment was better. 

I have been with DCF going on 2 years and have been really happy with the growth in my career and the progression of my work.  When I was looking for another career opportunity before stepping into my role with the agency, I was looking for something rewarding. I spent so long in the private sector of the job market helping the consumer and not doing anything to give back or help people with my career. I wanted to work to make a difference by helping the people who do the hard work for our state. I ended up applying and accepting an amazing job working with an incredibly warm and inviting team. Within 8 months I had the amazing opportunity to apply and promote to the job that I currently hold with DCF. It's been an incredible experience so far especially seeing all the others who have had same growth and success that I have had with this agency. On top of growth opportunities, I have a great work and home-life balance. A schedule of Monday-Friday working from 8-5 with an actual lunch break.  I went from working 60-70 hours a week in a salary position in the private sector of the job market to working 40 hours a week with a life outside of work again. I have taken multiple trips with the vacation time I've I've earned and have gotten back to enjoying my life and not having it all be about work like I was used to doing. I can't say enough for the good that comes from the work that our people do and for the strong leadership and support I have experienced even within my department. 

I would go to work before my shift and make coffee, turn lights on get prepared for my day. I enjoyed the people I worked with. There wasn't time during the day to converse and by coming in a little earlier, I was able to at least touch base with many of them.
I learned so many things while I was there anywhere from advancing in the skills I already had, multi-tasking at a higher level I performed before, I learned state laws of unemployment, new ways of dealing with people, and lots of "other (a lot of duties as assigned").  I love the challenge of it ALL.
Management was extremely educated, professional, supportive, patient and helpful. 
Co-workers became very involved with each other as we were in a department that required support, advice and a lot of guidance and directions was needed and it was advantageous to work with each other on a whole different level.
The hardest part was listening to justified or understandable separations from an employee that quit due to personal but not acceptable or eligible reason by law to leave their employment or an employer that had reason to dismiss an employee for good reason and had to deny their request that is stated and required by law.
I honestly loved my job, it was so challenging, educational, many opportunities to help others, developed strong and respectable relationships with co-workers and new skills.  Just an overall exciting position to have!

 The GOOD: I  worked as the Pre-ETS Specialist for the Kansas City office. First thing first, you get pretty good training. You will know a lot about the job. The trainer was accessible and available to help you. It will be about two months of training to get ready to work on the floor.   Some good benefits and PTOs. You can do a hybrid or mostly remote work. My department promotes it.  
The BAD:  The pay just plain sucks. They want you to have a bachelor's for the 20s to mid-'30s thousand-dollar jobs. The master's degree starts at about $37,000 which is a joke. They take 7% of your pay for a retirement program called KPERS.  It is a real hit after you look at the pay stub.  They got tons of unnecessary meetings. A lot of government red tape just for simple permission.  Every year, you got to go to Topeka for a week-long training. 
The manager is very nice but talks too much and micromanages you to a point that makes you anxious. He is very big on your wording and bother you over very small things.  When I gave my two weeks' notice. He stops talking to me. He didn't complete any time of goodbye meeting with me. He was very unprofessional and very petty in the end. Did all he could to avoid me like my two weeks were personal towards him. I left because I felt it was not the best fit for me financially. Really [petty stuff at the end. Just know that the pay doesn't match the work you put. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
The great benefits package was the most attractive part of working for the State of Kansas. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Working through the pandemic we shifted to remote work, yet following the end of the public health emergency declaration for COVID-19 the administrative policies surrounding hybrid work or WFH  were inflexible and out of touch with workers needs. The policies were also applied/followed inconsistently among various bureaus and programs. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The culture is stagnant and out of touch with the current realities. Due to outdated policies and pay rates, it was difficult to attract and retain good talent, which also allowed many individuals willing to stay to fail upward and comfortably exist in positions they were not qualified for. This was not always the case but it seemed to be true more often than not. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
A lack of guidance in my work along with the feeling of being monitored constantly and having little autonomy. I was rarely challenged by my work and felt I had stagnated.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Child protection specialist 1 salary reported	$53,089 per year
Human resources specialist 3 salaries reported	$19.16 per hour
Service assistant 3 salaries reported	$15.75 per hour
Registered nurse 12 salaries reported	$57,118 per year
Tax auditor 9 salaries reported	$22.22 per hour

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