The homeless services workforce, which includes any employee focused on providing direct services to people experiencing homelessness or working towards the goal of addressing and ending homelessness, is facing record levels of burnout and turnover. Street outreach workers, shelter staff, caseworkers, Continuum of Care agency staff, and many others need more support and resources in order to end homelessness.
Priorities
The Alliance is elevating and working to address challenges facing the homeless services workforce. Factors such as limited pay, disproportionate staff-to-client ratios, and other stressors are impacting employees from across the country. As a result, many agencies and organizations are experiencing high turnover and understaffing, which frustrates goals to provide the best possible services to clients and end homelessness. Future research, policy solutions, and resources will be added to this page as that work develops.
Workforce Video Series
Featured Resources
Blog Posts
- The Toll of Being an Employee of Color in the Homeless Services System
- Illustrating the Limits of Homeless Sector Wages: Employees Likely Struggle to Pay the Rent
- Honoring Our Sector on Labor Day
- EHV Report Identifies Workforce Shortages as a Major Obstacle to Implementing Vouchers
- Resiliency in Homeless Service Providers: Going Beyond Self-Care
In the News
- For homeless services staff, fulfillment doesn’t pay the bills (Route Fifty, December 2023)
- Homelessness is an epidemic — frontline workers need help (The Hill, September 2023)
- What does it mean when the homeless workforce can’t afford housing? (Route Fifty, September 2023)