[shavon]

He is ALWAYS late. Has never ever ever been on time...

We had a home visit yesterday that was supposed to be at 11 well 11 comes and goes No big deal he is always late, then 11:30 comes and goes, no big deal he is always late, then 12 comes and goes BIG deal, now I am going to be late for an appointment.. So I call him at the office big suprise no answer, so I call his cell phone, I ask "are you coming????" his reply..."oh my gosh I am so sorry, I forgot to call you to tell you that I need to cancelllllll ARGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

How inconciderate...I really like him as a CW he is always on top of things where the kids are concerned but totally inconciderate where myself and my time are concerned!!!!

What do I do??? I dont want to cause any probs for him because like I said he is a good case worker best I have had...He is just never on time for any thing...And I am a busy mommy, I dont have time to hurry up and wait on him all the time...

Any advice???

[missymissus]

I don't have any advice for you, but gosh it sounds like we have the same CW! He's never on time, but has gotten better since I started telling him up front when he schedules a meeting that I'm only available until X. If he doesn't show up by then, then we'll have to reschedule and if he shows up too close to X we'll have to cut the meeting short.

He's the best CW I have dealt with, and fortunately he's a really nice guy who understands that I'll do my best to work with him but can't free up an entire day to see if he'll show up.

[reesegayla]

I think I would try talking to him. Just tell him that you have other things going on and maybe to at least call you if he is going to be late or something...just make a point to him that you noticed he is always late.

[bethy724]

If he is a good cw I'd try to work with him; I'd confirm appts w/ him the morning he's expected. (something could happen if you do it the day before) No answer - call the cell & confirm. Maybe that could help jog his momory that there are people waiting on him. Good luck!

[shavon]

Thanks for the advice..He really is a good case worker. I did find out today though that he also "forgot" to hand in the kids wish list for christmas, so the kids will only get what we can afford. That ticked me off more than the being late thing.. It is all about the kids with me, I can deal with the lateness but if he starts slacking where the kids are concerned then ill make a fuss.

I shouldnt complain about the wish list, I was just hoping they would cover either the Needs or wants and I would cover the other. Now I will cover the needs and the wants will be few..I guess I am a little more ticked off because this is my little mans first christmas...

Oh well...Merry Christmas, happy holidays..
I am glad I am a part of this group!!!

[Maura_H]

He might be nice and all but his superviser needs to know about all this.

[Boulderbabe]

I have chronic problems with my CW being on time. She either cancels the morning of, or just doesn't show, or shows up more than an hour late. And I'm taking time off work for this!

I logged her lateness and cancellations for several months. Then I sent an email to her supervisor detailing the many times she'd done this, and asked very politely if something could be done to remedy the situation. That was the last time we had a problem.

[c.a]

I take a lot of hotline (emergency) cases where the workers have to pick up at my house by 8:00 a.m. I have a very clear policy with them: They can be five minutes late without a phone call and fifteen with. After that, I will take the kids with me and if they have to chase me around the state to get a child, not my problem. The first time I followed through, the worker had to drive 45 minutes out of her way to get the child. I have never had a caseworker unreasonably late since.

With the social workers for my long term kids - I have never had a problem with lateness. If I did, I would address it with them directly first and if it continues then bring it to his/her supervisor.

We allow our lives to be turned upside down for our foster kids. Expecting promptness (and notice) is not unreasonable.

[bethy724]

Oh noooo!! I would NOT tolerate no Christmas presents because of HIS mistake - take it to his boss, CASA ect... no, no-late is one thing - your childs needs not being met (in any way) is NOT ok-he needs to cough up some gifts. I would reallya sk if there is a storage room of toys, Child advocates ect... your children DESERVE what every other fc is getting for the holidays - this mistake would not fly w/ me.

[shavon]

Thank you all so much.. I have thought of reporting him to the supervisor but I feel like as long as he is taking care of the childrens needs and has their best intrest in mind then I would let things slide..BUT if the children does not get what they should for Christmas because of his "forgetfullness"then I will throw a fit...I am a very easy going person, I make mistakes often. just last week I posted on being to the doctor for well child check ups a day early...not late...but a day early...so I know that things happen.

I will start documenting the lateness and if it continues then I will pass it on to the supervisor.

I have even thought about next time he was late to just leave the house no note no call nothing..just so he could see how inconvenient it is..I feel like I am being petty..He really is a great case worker where the kids are concerned..with the exception of the christmas wish list thing..we have a visit at the office tomorrow and that is when foster parents are scheduled to pick up the gifts so we shall see how that turns out...

Thank you all for giving your thoughts and advice..and I am glad I am not the only one that deals with this, although I am in no way happy you are dealing with it LOL...

[Withay]

I always confirm every DHS personnel appt with an email the day before. If they are 15 min late I call and leave a message or if they answer I say "I thought we had a meeting scheduled for xx time. I must have written it down wrong. Could you please confirm the correct day and time for me." It doesn't matter if they do or don't answer, the statement I make for both is the same.

If they are more than 15 minutes late we reschedule because I don't have all day to sit and wait for them.

As for the gift list I would absolutely not tolerate that at all. I would tell him, in no uncertain terms, that I expect the children to get the gifts that they are supposed to from DHS. I wouldn't care if he had to pay for them out of his pocket or not. The kids deserve them. If he says 'sorry, it is too late' I would then immediately contact his supervisor.

[Boulderbabe]

I like your approach, Withay, except I would never say "I've written it down wrong." If I know that I haven't written it down incorrectly, I just say, "My understanding is that we have a meeting at X time."

It's crazy that we have to reconfirm with the SWs, but if it helps them be on time..

[ca-bigsister]

I don't see anything wrong with confirming with SWs. If they are late and I am home, that's fine then come on in. But the chances of us being home are very low, so if we're not there, then oh well. We'll make it next time. I'll leave a note and say we waited until x time and then had to go and leave a msg on their voicemail.

[ca-bigsister]

Today SW was supposed to be at my house at ten. I had to leave at 10:30 to go to work. At 10:05 I called the office and left a message. At 10:10 I called her cell phone and left a message saying I had to leave at 10:30 am. At 10:20 I called again and sent a text message. At 10:35 am, I left for work.

She called at 10:45 and said she had trouble finding the first house and then the second house, too of previous visits.

Umm, maybe get GPS if you have to find houses all day long. Oh, well, she saw my FD as my mom was there with her. She stayed 10 minutes and spoke to my FD about American Idol and never once asked her a question about how she's doing. She just talked the whole time, my mom said.