Crossroads

I thought about posting this last week and refrained. As the month comes to a close and my decision has been made, I'm ready to share.

It's no secret the US economy is in horrible shape and if you work in a government agency you've probably felt the impact of huge deficits in one way or another. I'm at a crossroads with my job right now. For the last 3 months my agency has started the process of forcing major structural changes in an effort to better meet the needs of the families we serve. Hours are changing, well functioning coherent teams are being uprooted and shifted around. I've been anxious and angry for 3 months...what will my job be, when will I work, who will my supervisor be, why are they fixing something that isn't broken, is this really going to help better serve our clients?

Three weeks ago it was announced that 25 employees would be laid off. Our workloads and the nature of our work is such that the loss of 25 employees coupled with monumental structural changes has me (and many other people) scared. Then a week ago we were told that employees can accept a voluntary layoff. What ensued was a week of sleepless nights and contemplation about one of the toughest decisions I've made in my 29 years.


When very knowledgeable people that you trust in your agency say, "if I could I would" and "I don't blame you and I support you" it speaks to the negative climate. So, here I am with 4 more days of work and then...

No, I won't abandon the field of social work but I will study for and take the licenced clinical social worker exam, take the Colorado school social worker exam and continue to explore the few job possibilities that are out there right now. Oh, and I might have a bit more time to train and finish some home projects. I think I might be able to sleep tonight!