This is our "Holiday Message" from Denise Chambers the Excutive Director of the Philadelphia County Assistance office. Paragraph #4 is is quite NICE. Please note where she UNDERLINED!
This is very unprofessional to say the least. You can write to Ms Chambers at the address below.
Office
Headquarters
Philadelphia State Office Building
1400 Spring Garden Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130-4088
End of the Year Message from the Executive Director
First I want to wish you Season Greetings. I hope all of you enjoy the time off that we’ll have near the end of the month and that you spend some time enjoying friends, and family. Second I want to thank you. Thank you for accomplishing two out of our three main goals. We reached and maintained for many months 50% TANF participation and we maintained our high standard of accuracy.
This year we saw many of our friends and coworkers retire, nearly 200 from Philadelphia County Assistance Offices. This brought about significant change. The ripple effect was felt in many ways. This provided opportunities for promotion, however, many promotional opportunities were delayed until we were able to have more caseworkers trained and in the offices. Logic dictates that one newly trained worker can not carry a full caseload and is not immediately as proficient as experienced workers could be, therefore even though we have filled most of our positions; you will see higher caseloads for more months to come.
Other changes we saw included non-alpha caseload assignment and greeter implementation. Non-alpha caseload assignment should be implemented in all districts this month. This was created and approved by a joint workgroup of management and labor in response to your justified complaints about the constantly changing caseloads. If implemented correctly, this will resolve some of those issues. The Greeter functions, as well as the CSR and self-serve phones, was implemented this fall as part of the State’s Modern Office concept. The Greeter’s main function is to ensure that the lobby is running smoothly by directing clients to various options and thereby eliminating long lines. Though there are some who don’t like the function, there are more who do both internally and externally.
Where we have failed as a county this year is in our customer service. We are still viewed as nasty (that word is actually used continuously) and uncaring. We present that image by the way we handle our work. There are staff who view clients as people not our equals and therefore not worthy of our respect and courteousy. What I don’t understand is - one out of every four of our employees were clients at some point in our life. Do you hate yourself that much? Have you forgotten the struggles that you had/have? How would you make it if your next check was delayed two weeks? Because if the truth were told, many are just one paycheck away from disaster.
During this holiday season, one of giving, can you open your hearts, search your behavior, and start treating our clients, the reason why we have a job, with dignity and respect. Feeling overworked and/or stressed is no excuse for rude behavior. When you call any place of business you expect to speak with someone who will resolve your issue. So do our clients. When we refuse them, that small dignity of answering or returning their calls, they become frustrated and we have put a confrontational situation into play.
We have to change our perceptions, and the public’s perception of us. Our very survival depends on it. No one will buy a car that runs sometime, they’ll buy a car that they can depend on; no one wants a doctor who may be right sometimes, you’ll go to a doctor you can depend on; and no one wants a worker who will respond to their needs sometimes. Though we may think no one else provides the services we do, the answer is not today but maybe tomorrow. If you believe in government workers, if you believe that we have a valuable expertise which is needed by society, than show it by your actions. Live our mission, Philadelphia CAO – Serving the Community Because WE CARE.
I challenge those who already provide caring service, to continue your excellent work. I challenge those who could improve to take a critical look at yourself and change your approach. The end of a year is always time for reflection. I wish you peace and excellence in this and every year to come
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