How to hire a family worker

How to hire a family worker, step by step

Here's a step-by-step family worker hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a family worker job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new family worker
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the family worker you need to hire. Certain family worker roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A family worker's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, family workers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of family workers.

   Type of Family Worker	Description	Hourly rate
   Family Worker	Social workers help people solve and cope with problems in their everyday lives. One group of social workers—clinical social workers—also diagnose and treat mental, behavioral, and emotional issues.	$13-23
   Alcohol And Drug Counselor	A drug alcohol counselor treats addicts in either one-on-one or group settings. They help by educating and developing possible treatment plans for patients to support them in coping with their addictive personalities... Show more	$14-32
   Service Counselor	Service counselors provide guidance to couples, individuals, groups, and families who are going through issues that influence their well-being and mental health. They comprehensively approach their clients by utilizing a "wellness" model that focuses on and motivate the client's potentials... Show more	$11-24

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Social Work
   • Foster Care
   • Child Care
   • Crisis Intervention
   • Community Resources
   • Substance Abuse
   • Child Development
   • Intake Assessments
   • Support Services
   • Risk Factors
   • Child Abuse
   • Mental Health Issues
   • DHS
   • Social Service Agencies

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Help children/youth in state custody achieve permanency whether through reintegration, adoption or custodianship.
   • Create service plans and attend administrative case reviews at the DCFS office.
   • Work with families developing and implementing permanent plan in accordance with DCFS policy, procedures, and accreditation standards.
   • Mediate conflicts between patients, handle medical emergencies, assist patients in developing and implementing positive and cooperative living skills.
   • Accompany the families to the IEP meeting and help them deal with any issues or concerns that arise.
   • Assess and evaluate all refer students and make plans to implement any need social services such as following IEP plans.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your family worker job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A family worker salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, family workers' average salary in florida is 59% less than in new jersey.
   • Seniority. Entry-level family workers earn 42% less than senior-level family workers.
   • Certifications. A family worker with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a family worker's salary.

   Average family worker salary

   $36,992yearly

   $17.78 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level family worker salary

   $28,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 29, 2026

4. Writing a family worker job description

   A family worker job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a family worker job description:

   Family worker job description example

   The Community Health Worker Center at Montefiore is a new Center of Excellence designed to help patients navigate social determinants of health. Family Health Workers (Community Health Workers) will be integrated as critical members of clinical heath care teams across the health system. The FHW will help patients identify and navigate clinical and community resources, help patients remain engaged in clinical care, and empower patients to advocate for themselves. He/She will be responsible for conducting follow up, documenting and reporting on patients' outcomes. FHWs will be responsible for providing support for patients at multiple clinical sites and be required to travel to each site weekly.
   Required:
   
   * Monday-Friday, 8:30am-5pm
   * High School Diploma/GED required
   * 2 year of relevant work experience.
   * This is a 100% grant funded position.
   * The Community Health worker will be working at CSCC/EPC.
   
   The Hostos CHW training program is a NYS Department of Labor approved CHW certificate program. Participation in the program may garner a CHW certificate and nine college credits. Instruction focuses on understanding of specific needs of underserved communities, individuals, and families in relation to the social determinants of health; coupled with on-the-job experiential training and support. Family Health Workers will be given release time to complete the training. Sessions will be held on work premises (virtual) for part of the workday and the workday will resume as normal thereafter. Participation in all three modules of training (144 hours) will be required as a condition of employment and it is expected that participants will gain a certificate within 18-24 months.
   
   Department: Montefiore Medical Group Bargaining Unit: 1199 Campus: MMG Employment Status: Regular Full-Time Address: 1621 Eastchester, Road Bronx
   
   
   [[filter13]]
   
   Diversity, equity and inclusion are core values of Montefiore. We are committed to recruiting and creating an environment in which associates feel empowered to thrive and be their authentic selves through our inclusive culture. We welcome your interest and invite you to join us.
   
   Montefiore is an equal employment opportunity employer. Montefiore will recruit, hire, train, transfer, promote, layoff and discharge associates in all job classifications without regard to their race, color, religion, creed, national origin, alienage or citizenship status, age, gender, actual or presumed disability, history of disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic predisposition or carrier status, pregnancy, military status, marital status, or partnership status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
   
   N/A

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find family workers for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your family worker job on Zippia to find and recruit family worker candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit family workers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new family worker

   Once you've found the family worker candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new family worker. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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