Pros
-Work was rewarding, I enjoyed working with individuals in mental health recovery. -Agency provides a lot of important services in the community. -Good benefits, pay is decent, good union support. -Laid-back overall vibe, co-workers were good people who cared about helping others.
Cons
-The agency is relatively large and sometimes one hand does not know what the other hand is doing. -New staff orientation is very general and not specific to one's job. Job-specific training generally occurs on-site and on-the-go. -Many staff do not necessarily have the experience or relevant background to necessarily do this work. More training was often needed, especially regarding how to address certain kinds of situations. -The job is challenging and at times you are in high-risk situations. It can also be emotionally draining. It can be hard to maintain a good work-life balance and burnout/high turnover are a problem. This is kind of a general social work/human services problem and comes with the territory to some degree.