Social work in the Yukon involves more than social workers. With the Government of Yukon there are opportunities of many kinds. One example are case aids.
Within Family and Children’s Services, case aids help with all sorts of tasks. This can include driving young people between schools, caregivers and group homes and supervising meetings as children visit their parents while remaining in the care of a caregiver.
Diana is a student at Yukon University.
She works part-time as a case aid in Whitehorse. The role has made such a positive impression on her, she is now considering a pivot from environmental studies into social work.
Let’s learn a bit about her role in Whitehorse which helps children of all ages.
How did you first consider this line of work?
Social work became something I considered when I moved to the Yukon. I moved here in 2023 to do a diploma in Northern Outdoor and Environmental Studies at Yukon University.
At the university I noticed that most of my peers were in social work and they loved what they did. So I did a few courses in social work and sociology just to know what's it about.
I wanted to know, what are the duties? What does a normal day look like? And it was very interesting. I felt like it's something that I could do. And something that is meaningful to the community.
I'm a new mom and I know the necessity for taking care of kids: How important it is to look after kids and make sure that they're safe and protected.
Now during my last semester, I am working part-time as a case aid.
What does a case aid do?
Typically we help the social workers. On a typical day we do transportation and supervision of visits between children and their families. In the case that a child is with a caregiver, we transport the child from the daycare or the caregiver’s home to meet their parents.
We supervise the visit to make sure that everyone is comfortable, the parents and the children, and just make sure that it's safe for both parties, especially the children.
And then after we transport them back.
Sometimes it's not just to see the family. Sometimes they're medical visits, sometimes it's to counseling visits. It depends and our days can look different.
In the car we engage with children. That can mean listening to music, singing songs or talking about adventures. We ask about their day or what they like.
Do you see yourself having a career in social work?
Yes, definitely. I feel like my diploma in Northern Outdoor and Environmental Studies is something good to have, but when I finish my diploma, I'm definitely going back to school to do something in relation to social work. Probably a master's.
I would like to work with children. As a mom, I feel like children are very fragile. They need support. They need additional attention. And I acknowledge that some families are having hard times and are going through different situations.
It's always good to have extra help.
Plus as an immigrant here, I had my child here and I'm the only one he has who is direct family. So I know how important it is to have some help.
What kind of hours do you work?
This is is a part-time role. I am an international student from Uganda and as such, I am only allowed to work 24 hours in a week.
So on the days that I don't have class, I'm at work. Sometimes I'll pull extra hours on the weekends if there is a visit that needs coverage.
I'm glad that the school doesn't take up all my Monday-to-Friday hours work hours.
What do you like about this job?
I think what I like the most is just witnessing those special moments between families.
Like when the kiddo gets to see their mom after a few hours. Because some of the visits are recurring, like, every day in the week or every two days. You always see the excitement between mom and kiddo or the father and the kid.
I feel like those are very positive, special moments that we don't get to see all the time.