Social and community service workers

NOC

42201

administer and implement social assistance programs and community services and assist clients to deal with personal and social challenges.

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Full NOC Description

Social and community service workers administer and implement a variety of social assistance programs and community services, and assist clients to deal with personal and social problems. They are employed by social service and government agencies, mental health agencies, group homes, shelters, substance abuse centres, school boards, correctional facilities and other establishments.

Main Duties

This group performs some or all of the following duties:

Review client background information, interview clients to obtain case history and prepare intake reports

Assess clients' relevant skill strengths and needs

Assist clients to sort out options and develop plans of action while providing necessary support and assistance

Assess and investigate eligibility for social benefits

Refer clients to other social services or assist clients in locating and utilizing community resources including legal, medical and financial assistance, housing, employment, transportation, day care and other services

Counsel clients living in group homes and halfway houses, supervise their activities and assist in pre-release and release planning

Participate in the selection and admission of clients to appropriate programs

Implement life skills workshops, substance abuse treatment programs, behaviour management programs, youth services programs and other community and social service programs under the supervision of social services or health care professionals

Meet with clients to assess their progress, give support and discuss any difficulties or problems

Assist in evaluating the effectiveness of treatment programs by tracking clients' behavioural changes and responses to interventions

Advise and aid recipients of social assistance and pensions

Provide crisis intervention and emergency shelter services

Implement and organize the delivery of specific services within the community

Maintain contact with other social service agencies and health care providers involved with clients to provide information and obtain feedback on clients' overall progress

Mobilise and coordinate volunteer resources and activities for a range of organizations such as human service agencies, health care facilities, arts and sports centres, etc.

May maintain program statistics for purposes of evaluation and research

May supervise social service support workers and volunteers.

Also Known As

Aboriginal outreach worker
addictions worker
child and youth worker
human service counselor (HSC)
community development worker

community service worker

crisis intervention worker

developmental service worker

drop-in centre worker

family service worker

group home worker

income maintenance officer - social services

life skills instructor

mental health worker

rehabilitation worker - social services

social services worker

veteran services officer

welfare and compensation officer

women's shelter supervisor

youth worker

Requirements

Employment Requirements

Completion of a college or university program in social work, child and youth care, psychology or other social science or health-related discipline is usually required.

Previous work experience in a social service environment as a volunteer or in a support capacity may replace formal education requirements for some occupations in this unit group.

Social service workers may be required to be a member of a provincial regulatory body in some provinces.

Provincial Regulation

Not Provincially Regulated

Employment by Sex

The following graph shows the percentage of men and women working in this occupation in New Brunswick.

Data legend

73.2%

Female

26.8%

Male

Employment by age

The following graph shows the breakdown of all persons working in this occupation in New Brunswick by age group.

Data legend

18.4%

15-24

29.2%

25-34

18.9%

35-44

17.1%

45-54

13.2%

55-64

3.2%

65+

Employment by highest level of education

The following graph shows the breakdown of all persons working in this occupation in New Brunswick by highest level of education achieved.

Data legend

2.3%

No Certificate, Diploma or Degree

22.6%

High School, Diploma or Equivalent

2.2%

Apprenticeship or Trades Certificate or Diploma

43.2%

College or University Below Bachelor Level

29.8%

University - Bachelor Level or Above

Employment by Industry

The following graph shows the industry groups in which the largest shares of persons working in this occupation in New Brunswick are employed. Small percentages for all top three industry groups may suggest employment for this occupation is widely distributed amongst many industry groups.

Data legend

74.0%

Health care and social assistance

9.2%

Public administration

8.0%

Educational services

8.8%

All Other Industries

Employment by Economic Regions

The following graph shows the breakdown of all persons employed in this occupation in New Brunswick by which economic region they reside in.

Data legend

23.90%

Northeast

23.20%

Southeast

24.40%

Southwest

20.90%

Central

7.70%

Northwest

Economic Regions

The following map displays New Brunswick’s five economic regions. An economic region (ER) is a grouping of counties, created as a standard unit for analysis of regional economic activity across Canada.

Annual Average Salary by Economic Regions

The following graph shows the average salary of all persons employed in this occupation in each of New Brunswick’s five economic regions.

Data legend

$49,200

Northeast

$48,200

Southeast

$41,800

Southwest

$38,800

Central

$41,000

Northwest

Economic Regions

Hourly Median Wages by Economic Regions

The following represents the median hourly wage of all persons employed in this occupation in each of New Brunswick’s five economic regions.

Salary

The following shows the average salary of everyone who worked full-time and year-round in this occupation across each of the Atlantic Provinces and nationally.

Employment Outlook

The following represents the number of job openings that are expected to occur in this occupation over the next three and ten years respectively, broken down by openings expected to result from growth (“new jobs”) and openings expected to result from attrition (death and retirements).

Occupational Profiles