Passion For The Profession: Celebrating Indiana Social Workers

Friday, March 8, 2019 at 7:57 AM

By Mary Kuhlman, Indiana News Service

Social workers in Indiana earn on average $42,000 a year.

Photo by uslikajme/Pixabay.

(Indianapolis, Ind.) - Those who provide comfort and protection for Hoosiers in crisis say they need more support in their efforts. 

March is National Professional Social Work Month, and in Indiana, about 8,000 licensed social workers provide assistance in schools, hospitals, mental-health facilities and social-service agencies. Executive Director of the National Association of Social Workers in Indiana Beryl Cohen says it's a high-stress job that comes with inadequate pay.

"We're not seeing the salaries that we should be seeing based on our education and our licensing," says Cohen. "We step into this because we really believe in what we do. And that passion is good, but believing doesn't put a meal on your table. And one of the biggest challenges is having people seeing us as well-trained professionals."

Cohen says social-worker pay lags behind other professions that perform similar duties. The average annual salary for social workers in Indiana is $42,000, compared with about $57,000 for a teacher and $70,000 for a registered nurse.

The CEO of the National Association of Social Workers, Angelo McClain, notes that social workers are the largest providers of mental-health services and also on the front lines of the opioid crisis.

"Social workers are providing the mental-health and substance-abuse services and also child protective services for those families as well," says McClain. "This one social problem has a ripple effect, and social workers are front and center on helping address those issues."

Congress is considering measures to better support the profession, including HR 1289 that would offer resources to recruit more social workers and HR 1309, which calls for workplace violence prevention plans at social service agencies. 

More from Local News


Events

Ripley County K9 Wins Multiple Awards

Teams that entered the competition ranged from Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia.

Closure Planned on State Road 262 in Ohio County

The closure will take place between Downey Ridge Road and Stephenson Road.

Lane Closure On I-275 Next Week

Crews will close the left lane of I-275 East between Blue Rock Road and U.S. 27 (Colerain Avenue).

Sports Physicals at South Dearborn High School on April 1

Physicals are twenty dollars per student.

Local Sports Report - March 28-29, 2025

Report missing stats and scores to news@eaglecountryonline.com

Local Sports Report - March 27, 2025

Report missing stats and scores to news@eaglecountryonline.com

On Air

Your Hometown Radio Station playing
David Lee Murphy - Dust on the Bottle

Blake Shelton Every Time I Hear That Song 21:09
Collin Raye Little Red Rodeo 21:05
Meghan Patrick Golden Child 21:02
Fox News Fox News National Newscast 21:01