Testimony on Raised House Bill 7292: AN ACT CONCERNING SOCIAL WORKER TITLE PROTECTION

Labor and Public Employees Committee

March 2019

Submitted by: NASW/CT Diversity Committee

Honorable Senator Kushner, Representative Porter and the Labor and Public Employees Committee,

The National Association of Social Workers CT Chapter Diversity Committee is in support of Title Protection for Social Workers, Raised Bill No. 7292, with the recommended language proposed by NASW/CT as noted herein.

The National Association of Social Workers – Connecticut Chapter, Board of Directors has recently commissioned the Diversity Committee to support diversity through social work and development; to advance professional standards and improve services related to awareness of diversity, equity and oppression; and to promote social justice through public policy and action.

The Diversity Committee is comprised of social workers at the MSW, and PhD levels who are dedicated to the profession, clients, social justice and the NASW Code of Ethics. Therefore, please accept this submission of testimony in consideration of Title Protection for Social Workers.

Many members of disenfranchised client populations’are provided services by agency employees who were given the title ‘social worker’ upon hiring. Although the services are highly needed, these workers may not be professionally trained and educated by accredited institutions of higher learning. Similar to several other professional occupations with protected titles, Title Protection for social workers ensures that those utilizing the title ‘social worker’ have earned a degree from an accredited Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) program. Currently, at least thirty-six other states have title protection for the social work profession.

More importantly, Title Protection safeguards disenfranchised and underserved Connecticut residents by ensuring services adhere to the Code of Ethics. Professionally educated CSWE social workers complete a comprehensive curriculum and acquire specific competencies which are applied to their practices, including ethical practices such as confidentiality and cultural competencies such as understanding cultural differences, human behavior and therapeutic treatments. Title Protection is not anticipated to adversely affect current agency workers who do not hold an accredited degree. The workers who have been bestowed the title of ‘social worker’ will continue on with a renaming of their job title. In fact, Title Protection may likely produce additional positive outcomes since many state agencies have encouraged and supported workers going back to school to earn a social work degree.

Therefore, we believe that in raising this bill the Labor and Public Employees Committee intended to include language that applies to all social workers, including BSWs that cannot be licensed and MSWs who do not need to be licensed. Unfortunately, the current language in Raised Bill 7292 ties title protection to social work licensure. Thus, the current language prohibits BSWs and MSWs who are not licensed from calling themselves a social worker even though they hold an accredited degree in social work. Therefore, the Diversity Committee requests that that the current language in Raised Bill 7292 be replaced with the language recommended by NASW/CT.

The following is our recommended language:

Sec. 20-195w. Social Work Title Protection. (a) No person shall (1) use the title “social worker” or any initials associated with such title, or (2) advertise services under the description of social worker, as defined in section 20-195m, unless such person has attained a baccalaureate or master degree in social work from a Council on Social Work Education accredited program or a doctoral degree in social work.

(b) Persons using the title of social worker without a degree in social work shall be notified to cease use of the title of social worker, such notice shall also be sent to the employer of said person. The Commissioner of Public Health or their designated representative, will be responsible for enforcement of this Act.

(c) (1) Nothing in this section shall prevent any person employed by the Department of Children and Families prior to July 1, 2019 with a title in the social work series of the classified service for using a title in such series to describe or perform his duties in the course of his or her employment with the Department of Children and Families. (2) The Department of Children and Families may employ social work trainees and social workers who do not hold a social work degree at time of hire and such employees may use the title social worker trainee or social worker if such hires attain a master degree in social work from a Council on Social Work Education accredited program or a doctoral degree in social work within five (5) years of the date of employment with the Department of Children and Families.

The Diversity Committee respectfully requests consideration of Title Protection for Social Workers. In addition, the Committee would be honored to provide any additional information. Furthermore, the Diversity Committee members offer their support toward instituting legislation which positively impacts underserved populations.

Respectfully,

NASW/CT Diversity Committee 

LaQueshia Clemmons, LMSW (co-chair)

Marlanda Hamilton, LMSW (co-chair)

Sherryl Chin, MSW

Alberto Cifuentes, Jr., LMSW

Antonia Cordero, LMS, DSW

Cheryl Green, LCSW, Ph.D.

Irwin Krieger, LCSW

Karen McLean, LMSW, Ph.D.

Rick Tsukada, LCSW

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