In May 2009, workers at the Children’s Aid Society (CAS) in Brantford threatened job action against their employer because they wanted improved pay and working conditions; however, they also wanted taxpayers to cover them against an increasing number of civil suits filed against them by families affected by their work. Traditionally, children’s aid societies indemnify workers against criminal charges filed against them, but not civil suits. On May 8th and May 22nd, 2009, a number of parents protested outside the CAS offices and the offices of their local Member of Provincial Parliament to raise the issue of accountability.
Children's Aid Societies Perceived to Hold Substantial Power but Lack Accountability
This story is the tip of the iceberg on the whole issue of accountability in Ontario’s child protection agencies and the employees they hire to ensure the safety of our most precious resource: our children. Those calling for accountability are not asking for child protection agencies to disappear or be shut down, but are instead asking for greater accountability and transparency with respect to the way these agencies do their work.
For example, somebody selling T-shirts on Yonge Street must apply for a license and carry insurance in Toronto, while child protection workers who at times must act quickly and intrusively to apprehend children from alleged imminent harm are not required to carry insurance, be licensed or legally accountable to anybody, such as a professional body. At one time, most child protection agencies required all of its workers to have a social work degree and for the most part, specialize in children and families. However, high caseloads, funding pressures and difficulty retaining staff have led to many agencies lowering requirements.
Along with reducing qualifications to work as a child protection worker, most children's aid societies have also significantly improved pay and working conditions for its staff over the past twenty years. While most child protection workers and managers are ethical and use sound judgment in making decisions to preserve families or when necessary to apprehend a child, there are hundreds if not thousands of stories of families allegedly torn apart and destroyed by a broken child protection system.
Apparently, there are more than enough workers that have allegedly acted in ways that led to province-wide protests by a growing number of parents against their methods. It is not the obvious cases of protection that such families object to, but the so-called gray areas of child welfare where a parent may be deemed unfit for a number of reasons unrelated to abuse or neglect: impoverished circumstances, medical conditions, disabilities, religious or spiritual beliefs, home schooling, among other issues.
Some parents argue that in many of these cases, there are clear alternatives available to workers that would allow their children to remain at home. Instead some parents feel that child protection authorities have intrusively entered their lives, using anonymous or trumped up allegations to force the matter into court or to get parents to sign so-called "voluntary agreements". Parents feel vulnerable in these circumstances as they try to defend their rights as a parent against a state-funded agency with limitless legal resources at its disposal.
Growing Call for Accountability Heard in the Courts and By the Ombudsman
Each of Ontario's fifty-three child protection agencies are individual not-for-profit organizations with their own boards, as well as their own set of rules as to how people can complain about services received (or not received). In general, some agencies have cumbersome processes that involve many steps and myriad rules that simulate a Franz Kafka novel. Apart from Newfoundland, Ontario is the only province that does not allow its Ombudsman to deal with complaints about children's aid societies.
However, jurisprudence is developing to define rights under the Charter that will in the future swing the pendulum of child protection trends to a better balance. A Supreme Court of Canada case called New Brunswick (Minister of Community and Social Services) v G(J), 1999, 3 SCR 46 , culminated as a result of a Charter challenge based on the premise that the apprehension of one's child can potentially offend s. 7 (security of person) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and a parent should be entitled to coverage under Legal Aid to pay for representation in these proceedings.
While this does not provide much for a growing number of parents that do not qualify for Legal Aid and cannot afford private counsel, additional Charter issues are raised, such as the right of a parent to receive reasonable notice and full disclosure of allegations made against them, as well as an opportunity to present a full and fair defence. This has put the courts on notice to provide additional support to unrepresented parents who find themselves involved in child protection proceedings. Additional information on Charter issues involved in child welfare law can be found on the web.
There is no independent complaint process in Ontario against children’s aid societies or workers, nor is there independent oversight of the general operations of these agencies. Ontario’s Ombudsman has attempted for years to lobby for the right to oversee and investigate complaints against these agencies (via Bill 93), but the Minister of Children, Youth and Families Deb Matthews has been resistant to opening the doors to this type of accountability, as with OACAS, the Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies, which has been on record as stating there is plenty of accountability in place for these agencies. If this is indeed the case, then why are so many parents marching and protesting against what they see as a potential abuse of power of the state?
Some Resources
http://www.nationalpost.com/story.html?id=1690967
"Children's Aid Society Workers Should Be Reigned In, Critics Say", National Post, June 12, 2009
http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1546306
"CAS Workers Back Demands with Strike Vote" Staff Want Better Legal Protection", May 2009
http://ombudsman.on.ca/media/11571/20070124_globeandmail.pdf
"Watchdog Pleads for Children's Aid Oversight: Ombudsman cites CAS 'Horror Stories' that
His Office is Unable to Remedy", Globe & Mail, January 24, 2007
http://www.ombudsman.on.ca/media/89799/ar09-english.pdf
Ombudsman Ontario - Annual Report - 2008-2009, pp. 18-19
Angela Browne - Angela Browne is an independent Paralegal practising in the Niagara Region, of the Province of Ontario (Canada). She is a published ...
