Discussions

wow, there have sure been a lot of these incidents lately. Seems we read about them everyday.  
 
Then they are just released to do it all again. Surely something better can be done. A definite overhaul of the youth justice system.  
 
The workers must be stressed, eventually to go on sick leave (my opinion).  
 
http://www.qcountryfm.ca/news-weather/news-sports-details/newsarticle/three-group-home-employees-allegedly-assaulted-by-same-teen/?print=:1&cHash=:961bdf5eee6731fc76c850c0d45948d6  
 
Edited by Brenda.., 2018-08-24 11:00:01

I always wonder how they manage to keep any of them staffed. I doubt the pay is worth it!

I believe what needs to be done is that they hire workers who have been in similar situations as those kids. Those kids feel like its them against the world they need at least one person who believes in them to do great in the world.

 
 
Edited by april, 2018-08-24 14:47:26

ElleM said "I believe what needs to be done is that they hire workers who have been in similar situations as those kids. Those kids feel like its them against the world they need at least one person who believes in them to do great in the world. "

People aren’t just hired off the street. They do need some education and personal experience for this position. They also have training workshops to attend. The staff do truly care about the kids in care and have set up plans with the youth and are there to assist the kids to reach their goals. I suggest you read the job des:cription to really understand the position. https://careertrend.com/facts-5879385-job-des:cription-group-home-worker.html

april said "    ElleM said "I believe what needs to be done is that they hire workers who have been in similar situations as those kids. Those kids feel like its them against the world they need at least one person who believes in them to do great in the world. " People aren’t just hired off the street. They do need some education and personal experience for this position. They also have training workshops to attend. The staff do truly care about the kids in care and have set up plans with the youth and are there to assist the kids to reach their goals. I suggest you read the job des:cription to really understand the position. https://careertrend.com/facts-5879385-job-des:cription-group-home-worker.html "

Posted a link that says page cannot be found. Education does nothing in this they need people that have gone through similar situations not someone who went to university and only has that educations when dealing in the homes.

Is better laws. So many reports lately of these situations.  
 
These kids know they can get away with it and have nothing happen to them. I realize they are troubled kids, but they still know better, after being hauled away by police, they may be troubled, but obviously not stupid and know what they can get away with.  
 
So, they just keep doing it, over and over. Nothing happens to them, they don't go to jail, they don't get sent to a boot camp, they don't get sent to a care unit where they can be monitored in a more controlled environment. They get sent right back to do it all over again.

I agree with you!  
 
I'm sure that I'm not the only one that had a tough childhood but I made it through without doing s**t like some of these kids now a days. The workers need protecting from these little animals. Maybe a cattle prod to give them a good jolt when they start acting up?

I was put in onenof these home when i was 12 in that house i was physically, and emotionally abused. I was sent to school with bruises and workers would sayboh thats makeup and teachers believed them. By the time i left at 14 i could not long use my voice could not look people in the eye. Also had i not left im 100% sure sexual abuse would have started.  
 
I would not be here today had i stayed in a group home i would be dead and rotting in a ditch somewhere.  
 
I left 12+ years ago and i still have nightmare my attackers are going to come back.  
 
Since leaving i havent been arrested or jailed finished school and am be successful in my life.

ElleM said "I was put in onenof these home when i was 12 in that house i was physically, and emotionally abused. I was sent to school with bruises and workers would sayboh thats makeup and teachers believed them. By the time i left at 14 i could not long use my voice could not look people in the eye. Also had i not left im 100% sure sexual abuse would have started.     I would not be here today had i stayed in a group home i would be dead and rotting in a ditch somewhere.     I left 12+ years ago and i still have nightmare my attackers are going to come back.     Since leaving i havent been arrested or jailed finished school and am be successful in my life. "

Good for you that you are becoming successful.  
 
I believe in the past 12+ years there have been many changes made at group homes to stop things like you are describing.

There is not discipline anymore. This kid assaults group hone works and gets a slap on the wrist. Then gets to go back to the group home and assault workers again  
 
You shouldnt have anxiety about going to work and getting assaulted by a teenage delinquent.  
 
There is next to no reprocusioons for his actions as well, besides a slap on the wrist because he’s a minor.

ElleM said "I was put in onenof these home when i was 12 in that house i was physically, and emotionally abused. I was sent to school with bruises and workers would sayboh thats makeup and teachers believed them. By the time i left at 14 i could not long use my voice could not look people in the eye. Also had i not left im 100% sure sexual abuse would have started.     I would not be here today had i stayed in a group home i would be dead and rotting in a ditch somewhere.     I left 12+ years ago and i still have nightmare my attackers are going to come back.     Since leaving i havent been arrested or jailed finished school and am be successful in my life. "

so sorry for your awful experience in care & hope you know that it's not too late to pursue getting some accountability for what was done to you.  
As someone who worked in group home(s) for over 30 years I can say that the vast majority of staff deeply care about the kids in their cars. april has said staff should have education & personal experience, not education by itself. Brenda: better laws wouldn't change anything IMO. Actually enforcing the existing laws might have an impact but then look at it this way . . . why with teens when we can see so many adults get slapped on the wrist. I think that the higherarchy of our justice systems, so never get touched by these "crimes" have directed our crown attorneys & judges re: sentencing, bail, recognizance etc. Also, society in general has become so accepting of "reasons leading to poor choices" that they actually enable these kids/people. Just my thoughts.

When I last checked the statistics, 90% of the children in CFS care in Manitoba are indigenous. Where are all the native leaders?? The chiefs, band councilors, elders, etc.?? They talk a great talk but are just like any other politician, all talk! They are so concerned about land deals, apologies, and situations that happened 50+ years ago!!! This is here and now! It’s time to put some of these other issues on hold for the time being and deal with this crisis right now, and this is at a crisis point! This is the current and future generation we’re dealing with and nothing changes! Is this not the 60s scoop happening all over again in present time?!?! I think it’s time for accountability.

pilot said "When I last checked the statistics, 90% of the children in CFS care in Manitoba are indigenous. Where are all the native leaders?? The chiefs, band councilors, elders, etc.?? They talk a great talk but are just like any other politician, all talk! They are so concerned about land deals, apologies, and situations that happened 50+ years ago!!! This is here and now! It’s time to put some of these other issues on hold for the time being and deal with this crisis right now, and this is at a crisis point! This is the current and future generation we’re dealing with and nothing changes! Is this not the 60s scoop happening all over again in present time?!?! I think it’s time for accountability. "

this is not the "sixties scoop" all over again since many many many of these indiginous kids are in care of Native &/or Metis agencies.

Come work in a house for a day and see how u feel after that. Don’t complain when you aren’t in the situation daily. People in here like to complain about everything. You guys have to realize the background these kids come from. There’s a reason why they act the way they do. Not saying everything is acceptable but if you don’t understand it don’t speak about. Everyone’s quick to say how bad these kids are but no one realizes what these kids been through before they got here

These native agencies you speak of are Run under the umbrella of CFS which is a department of and funded by the provincial government . When this reaches the breaking point in 10,15, or whatever years down the road , and it will, who will have the finger pointed at them and who will have to pay out the settlement?? That’s right, the government, which is you and I. So how is this not a form of the 60s scoop? There are 10,000 indigenous kids in CFS care in Manitoba right now, the highest in Canada and what’s being done to help and rehabilitate these kids and their families, nothing that I can see! If you or anyone out there knows of what programs or steps being taken to remedy this I would sincerely like to know. I feel sorry for these kids and understand what the history is that led up to this, but what is being done here and now?!?!

be concerned at the number of assaults taking place in our group homes. Regardless of the background these children come from - they need to realize that certain behavior is unacceptable in our society and that there will be consequences imposed on same. We need to stop the revolving door and slap on the wrist within our Court system. Family Court Judges need to start imposing some serious consequences on these young offenders. If the Courts continue with no consequences for bad behavior then when the individual turns 18 then could discover that the consequences for unacceptable behavior is a jail sentence in a Federal Pen. where they will get a real eye opener. We need to bring back our military style wilderness camps.

Just watched 5 fire vehicles, 2 ambulances and 2 police come to the group home across from us. They were only there 15 minutes and from what I could see, nothing major went on. What a waste of the resources and their time. This is the same teen that broke her window when the staff wouldn’t buy her fast food....the police are often called to deal with her outbursts  
 
I grew up with a dysfunctional family and childhood and also have worked briefly in group homes with DOCFS. (In regard to the poster who said people on here complain about things they know nothing about) Something needs to change. These group home incidences are happening far too often. From my experience, the group homes need to enforce the rules better and be able to discipline the teens. Yes, some of them have real issues, disorders and behaviour issues but staff should not fear going to work

sammy said "Just watched 5 fire vehicles, 2 ambulances and 2 police come to the group home across from us. They were only there 15 minutes and from what I could see, nothing major went on. What a waste of the resources and their time. This is the same teen that broke her window when the staff wouldn’t buy her fast food....the police are often called to deal with her outbursts     I grew up with a dysfunctional family and childhood and also have worked briefly in group homes with DOCFS. (In regard to the poster who said people on here complain about things they know nothing about) Something needs to change. These group home incidences are happening far too often. From my experience, the group homes need to enforce the rules better and be able to discipline the teens. Yes, some of them have real issues, disorders and behaviour issues but staff should not fear going to work "

You worked in a group home so you know that in terms of enforcing the rules, staff can only say what's allowable. They can't put hands on any resident unless the resident is harming self or another: you know this, right? & The staff can't prevent a resident from leaving unless there's been a specific threat of danger to his/her self or the public. Also, when the court - not Family Court by the way - releases a kid, the group home for example can't say they won't have the resident back: that's the kid's home. That's where the Justice system butts heads with the Child Welfare system. It seems a lot of people don't understand this.

Yes, I did know that. However, IME, even basic household rules (like cleaning up after themselves, being polite, not damaging property) were not enforced. It was a shit show in many of their homes to be honest. A lot of bad behaviour and risky behaviour was allowed, even encouraged by some staff (driving them to get their drugs for example) because it was “easier” than dealing with saying no to the teens.  
 
I don’t know what needs to be done. I know it won’t/can’t be easy. However, something needs to be done in some of these homes. What they’re doing now obviously isn’t working so great. A lot of the staff wanted to be viewed as their friend whereas I am more about tough love. Hate me if you want but I won’t drive anyone to get their drugs, especially minors.

sammy said "Yes, I did know that. However, IME, even basic household rules (like cleaning up after themselves, being polite, not damaging property) were not enforced. It was a shit show in many of their homes to be honest. A lot of bad behaviour and risky behaviour was allowed, even encouraged by some staff (driving them to get their drugs for example) because it was “easier” than dealing with saying no to the teens.     I don’t know what needs to be done. I know it won’t/can’t be easy. However, something needs to be done in some of these homes. What they’re doing now obviously isn’t working so great. A lot of the staff wanted to be viewed as their friend whereas I am more about tough love. Hate me if you want but I won’t drive anyone to get their drugs, especially minors. "

we certainly had clear expectations regarding: chores, hygiene & basic behaviours. For the most part, kids were cooperative with these. Staff looking to be their "special friend" or thinking they'd be the one to make big changes in kids' lives got turned up pretty fast (by the kids). I worked for a different agency than you did. Hope you reported these serious infractions to at least the Children's Advocate.  
I still believe that the majority of staff care deeply for these kids in their care & do the best that they can , given the restrictions that are placed on them.

That should be "got TUNED up pretty fast", not "turned up".

sammy said "Just watched 5 fire vehicles, 2 ambulances and 2 police come to the group home across from us. They were only there 15 minutes and from what I could see, nothing major went on. What a waste of the resources and their time. This is the same teen that broke her window when the staff wouldn’t buy her fast food....the police are often called to deal with her outbursts     I grew up with a dysfunctional family and childhood and also have worked briefly in group homes with DOCFS. (In regard to the poster who said people on here complain about things they know nothing about) Something needs to change. These group home incidences are happening far too often. From my experience, the group homes need to enforce the rules better and be able to discipline the teens. Yes, some of them have real issues, disorders and behaviour issues but staff should not fear going to work "

a massive response? Doesn't sound like there was a fire so why five vehicles from the fire dept?

MDG... I agree that there are a lot of caring, wonderful staff doing that job!! Some others? Not so much...it’s just a paycheque to them. A lot of staff were just young adults going to school and it was an “easy” job in regard to working around their their schedules  
 
Johnbisonbear...I hit the wrong button, there was 4 fire vehicles (2 fire engines and 2 fire trucks) not 5 but still, that’s a lot!! I’m interested to hear what happened because from the outside looking in, nothing major happened.

From what I've seen, the pay is peanuts, but they want you to have some post secondary, as well as working with some of the most vulnerable and traumatized youth in our country- THAT says how much we value group home workers, NOT the behaviour of kids!!  
 
As for those saying kids get a slap on the wrist, NOT THE CASE. These young people often have no one to stick up for them in the world, they will be lucky if their social worker turns up for court, and they WILL be recommended to go to detention, which might be WAY out of proportion with what they've done, and will only traumatize them further. These are often kids with PTSD, getting very little treatment IF ANY (our mental health system is a whole other but related topic).  
 
If they don't have an active parent in their life to take them to court ordered anger management, or help them pay restitution, or take them to counselling or court dates, they WILL end up incarcerated in the justice system, for things that a kid WITH an active parent WILL NOT. Stop saying they get a slap on the wrist, when they've had things happen to them most adults don't want to think about, and they have watched those that damage THEM get no consequences. Go sit in youth court for a day, see the crown recommend detention for a severely mentally ill kid whose mother was recently murdered, and did a foolish property crime.  
If kids end up incarcerated, they will have conditions, that will very likely be breached because their living situation is not supportive enough or stable enough, and they will end up incarcerated AGAIN, and start the pattern of jail for their life. It's not a slap on the wrist, these kids need more care than the system currently provides is what is going on.

What if when BPS officers attended amd took them in there is a middle person (cousellor or along those lines) that met with these kids and talked to them about whats happening. Then jail and after a release officer/cousellor had to check in once a week/month (depending on the kid) in a welfare check sort of idea. Similar to the YMCA YTP Program but put it through BPS. Also they cousellor would give the kids a cell number they could phone them on day or night and meet somewhere public nust so the kids could talk about whatever is bugging them. Sometimes its not the message but the messenger.