SOCIAL WORKERS WALK; JOB ACTION CENTERS ON PAY, WORKLOAD CONCERNS CITED BY COUNTY EMPLOYEES.

Byline: Teresa Jimenez Daily News Staff Writer

More than a dozen county social workers picketed the county Department of Children and Family Services office on Lyons Avenue on Tuesday, the day employees declared a strike, citing excessive caseloads and unfair pay.

The Newhall-based social workers union expected all 30 members to leave the office in support of the strike.

``The primary reason is we need lower caseloads so we have more time to work with children and families,'' said Barbara Dallis, a union member and social worker who lives in Santa Clarita.

Gayle Grether, a union team leader and Canyon Country resident, said social workers have become increasingly frustrated as their workloads have steadily increased.

The number of cases, combined with the pressure of dealing with abuse situations - where children sometimes suffer concussions and broken bones at the hands of family members - have caused employees to take stress leaves or quit, the pickets said. Three social workers in the Newhall office are on stress leave, Grether said.

``There's been no strike since 1966, so we don't take this lightly,'' she said. ``But we've been pushed and pushed and pushed.''

There are 2,600 social workers countywide, and officials were unsure Tuesday afternoon of the exact number who walked off the job. A spokeswoman did verify, however, that social workers' caseloads are often larger than the cap set for their positions.

``It's something we continue to deal with. The cases keep coming in,'' said Victoria Pipkin, spokeswoman for the county Department of Children and Family Services. ``It's clearly a symptom of society.''

Many social workers have at least 75 cases, and some have as many as 90, Pipkin said, even though the cap for many social workers is supposed to be 60 cases.

And the work keeps coming, Pipkin said. In 1996, the county received 197,000 calls on its abuse hotline, she said.

``Each one of those calls has to be assessed,'' Pipkin said. ``I think the children's safety is the most important thing.''

The social workers picketing in Newhall couldn't agree more. They said they worked over the weekend, putting in overtime to update their cases, resolve any problems and prepare information in case they did go on strike.

Many said their jobs have drained them to the extent that their family members are feeling the stress.

``We need a manageable caseload so we can go home and be there for our own families,'' Dallis said.

Another major concern among the social workers is the issue of pay. Social workers have been demanding that they be given pay equal to that of probation officers, who perform similar duties.

``They make more because it's a male-dominated profession,'' said Victoria Colligan, a picketing social worker who lives in Northridge. ``But we're often higher-educated, and we're more stressed. We have to visit the families and have large caseloads.

``We're not asking for that much for the amount of time we went to school. We're licensed therapists. We have master's degrees.''

The social workers said they also are frustrated because they have not received a raise or a cost-of-living increase in four years.

``If you cared about money, you wouldn't be in this job,'' Grether said.

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1--color) Striking social services workers walk the picket line outside the office Tuesday

(2--color) A picket wears a strike button on his hat at the Newhall social services office.

Shaun Dyer/Special to the Daily News