'By clearly articulating our values for ethical practice in one resource, social workers will be better prepared to help clients'
The Canadian Association of Social Workers (CASW) recently released their new Code of Ethics resource, marking the first major overhaul to the guiding document in over 20 years.
“Canadian society has changed significantly over the last two decades, with massive upheaval in the last few years alone – this Code of Ethics equips social workers across the country to grapple with this changing reality,” said Joan Davis-Whelan, CASW president.
“By clearly articulating our values for ethical practice in one resource, our hope is that social workers will be better prepared to help their clients.”
The new resource integrates values, guiding principles and guidelines for social workers into one document for ease of use and application.
CASW’s previous Code of Ethics – launched in 2005 – included two documents: the actual Code of Ethics with six values and a guidelines to ethical practice. The 2024 version also has seven values listed in it.
“As an employer, now I can look at this and say, ‘OK, here it is. Here are the values and here are the points underneath each one’. So it's very easy for me to look at something. And as a social worker responsible for my own practice, I can actually look and see very easily what is under each category,” Davis-Whelan told HRD.
“And we included certain things as well… [such as] terms of recognition of environmental issues, those types of things from a social justice lens.”
Late in 2023, the Canadian Purpose Economy Project (CPEP) launched its A Call to Purpose campaign, which calls on business leaders to be part of the movement toward a purpose-first economy in Canada.
Truth and Reconciliation lens
CASW’s new document also comes with a focus on catering to Indigenous groups.
“We wanted to develop the Code of Ethics with a Truth and Reconciliation lens, that was really important to us… One of the recommendations from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission talked… about involving Indigenous peoples and viewpoints. In the work that we do, and because our work is so critical across the country, we wanted to do that,” said Davis-Whelan.
“We felt that, [as] social workers, it was really important that we not only read that information, but put it into action, and that's why we wanted to have a Code of Ethics that reflected that.”
It’s also important for them to have a “trauma-informed practice” and an understanding of the “impact of trauma in people's lives and their communities, but also about resilience and what that means and what that looks like,” she said.
Overall, nearly six in 10 (58.6%) Indigenous workers have experienced discrimination in their current workplace, ComIT.org previously reported.
Biggest issues social workers face today
The life of social workers is not easy with the number of issues they face today, said Davis-Whelan.
Among these issues are the limited time for social workers to do their work and employers being short-staffed. Also, clients and service users are unable to access services, especially in rural areas where “there may not be the diversity and accessibility to services,” she said.
Another issue is that social workers are “probably reevaluating whether they are in the wrong profession,” and asking whether they have “all the supports and resources [they] need for that purpose," said Davis-Whelan.
“That's a big issue, because we talk about it not only from the point of view of nurses and doctors, those types of things. But when we take a look at mental health and addictions, – huge issues right across this country – and services within communities, be it long-term care, accessing community supports, it's challenging.
“Because there's such a demand for services, and there may not always be those social work resources that exist right across the country. It's not an equal playing field.”
Late in 2023, the Canadian government announced it is investing $3.5 million over five years to develop a “National Plan for Health Workforce Well-Being”, which he said will improve health care workforce retention.
Resource helpful for social workers
With all these issues that social workers face, the new Code of Ethics resource could be helpful, said Davis-Whelan.
“From the point of view of social workers, any resource that you can provide to them that will help them in terms of addressing issues that come up in their practice, is invaluable. And it also helps from the point of view of what the expectation is amongst peers. Like ‘What is it I should be doing?’”
The document also provides solutions to social workers who may be going through a dilemma, specifying steps that they should take and the persons they should talk to, she said.
“The tool of reflection and thinking about things and thinking it through that the code of ethics really does talk about is really important for them in their practice.”