How to hire a social worker

How to hire a social worker, step by step

Here's a step-by-step social 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 social worker job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new social worker
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a social worker do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the social worker you need to hire. Certain social 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

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a social worker to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a social worker that fits the bill.

   Here's a comparison of social worker salaries for various roles:

   Type of Social Worker	Description	Hourly rate
   Social 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.	$17-32
   Family Counselor	A Family Counselor treats married couples or family members in order to help them overcome mental or emotional problems. They provide effective treatment measures to help the family members resolve their issues.	$12-29
   Crisis Counselor	A crisis counselor is responsible for providing assistance and emotional support to clients under crises or mental health emergencies caused by stress, trauma, grief, and other factors. Most crisis counselors work at clinics or counseling centers, and there are instances where they can be at schools and organizations... Show more	$17-33

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Social Work
   • Patients
   • Patient Care
   • MSW
   • Discharge Planning
   • Home Health
   • Crisis Intervention
   • Social Services
   • Rehabilitation
   • Psychosocial Assessments
   • Veterans
   • Community Agencies
   • Substance Abuse
   • Group Therapy

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Assist clients in achieving treatment goals such as anger, ADHD, grief, social skills, and manners.
   • Lead and co-le CBT and DBT skills-base groups with participants, as well as relapse prevention, mindfulness and process groups.
   • Support patient questions and issues regarding Medicare ESRD entitlement and Medicaid and assist in the completion of the appropriate documentation.
   • Coordinate IPU discharge planning patients to SNF, ALF, PCH or in-home care with necessary support for care.
   • Facilitate relationships with AKF and other patient assistance programs, VA, Medicare, Medicaid and other insurance providers.
   • Complete Medicaid and Medicare applications as needed.

   More social worker duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your social worker job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A social worker salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a social worker in Georgia may be lower than in Oregon, and an entry-level social worker usually earns less than a senior-level social worker. Additionally, a social worker with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average social worker salary

   $50,102yearly

   $24.09 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level social worker salary

   $37,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 17, 2026

   Average social worker salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Oregon	$67,065	$32
   2	California	$63,180	$30
   3	District of Columbia	$62,783	$30
   4	Washington	$60,188	$29
   5	Nevada	$59,521	$29
   6	Arizona	$53,662	$26
   7	Utah	$53,350	$26
   8	New Hampshire	$53,215	$26
   9	Massachusetts	$52,597	$25
   10	Minnesota	$51,759	$25
   11	New York	$51,336	$25
   12	Hawaii	$50,024	$24
   13	Texas	$49,724	$24
   14	Colorado	$49,560	$24
   15	Maine	$49,013	$24
   16	Maryland	$49,013	$24
   17	Ohio	$48,761	$23
   18	Louisiana	$48,458	$23
   19	Illinois	$48,200	$23
   20	Pennsylvania	$47,951	$23

   Average social worker salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Health Advocates	$79,323	$38.14	19
   2	Medical Billing	$76,003	$36.54
   3	Whidbey General Hospital	$74,014	$35.58
   4	Trident Medical Center	$73,863	$35.51
   5	Renal Research Institute, LLC	$73,681	$35.42
   6	US Oncology Holdings Inc	$73,024	$35.11	4
   7	American Renal Associates Holdings	$71,453	$34.35	13
   8	Medical City Arlington	$70,251	$33.77
   9	Planit	$70,211	$33.76	3
   10	AHMC Healthcare	$70,038	$33.67	6
   11	Favorite Healthcare Staffing	$69,874	$33.59
   12	Vail Health	$69,535	$33.43
   13	Mission Health Services	$69,198	$33.27	6
   14	Landmark Hospital	$69,041	$33.19
   15	Healthcare Resolution Services	$68,955	$33.15
   16	SCA Health	$68,872	$33.11
   17	Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center	$68,830	$33.09
   18	Cibola General Hospital	$68,472	$32.92	2
   19	The University of Chicago	$68,213	$32.79	3
   20	Baptist Health Care	$68,138	$32.76	2

4. Writing a social worker job description

   A social 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 social worker job description:

   Social worker job description example

   IT'S SIMPLE. You want to work in a healthcare setting where you are valued and appreciated - where you receive respect from your superiors and co-workers as well as the patients/residents you treat. You want to be challenged by your job without being overwhelmed by it. You want to play an instrumental role in helping a patient recover, sometimes against strong odds, and go home. What you want is Kindred Healthcare. Our mission is to promote healing, provide hope, preserve dignity and produce value for each patient, resident, family member, customer, employee and shareholder we serve.
   Join us!
   
   Summary:
   In this key role you will integrate Social Service functions into patient care, discharge, and home planning processes with other hospital departments, external service organizations, agencies and healthcare facilities. Responsibilities:
   
   Help patients and families deal with the social and psychological factors of illness and their impact on family functioning and show them how to achieve maximum benefits from healthcare services
   Participate with physicians, nursing personnel and other members of the multidisciplinary team in planning patient care services and developing the patient care plan
   Engage in individual or group counseling sessions pertaining to care and adjustment
   Assist in implementing Social Services patient care policies and provide guidance in handling special cases or patient needs
   Develop harmonious working relationships with other departments; ensure staff's awareness of available services and resources; serve as liaison with external social service organizations
   Direct the Social Services discharge and home-care planning process to ensure the provision of continuing care and effective patient/family support services; arrange for care through institutions and agencies in the community
   Provide information to patients, families and other hospital departments regarding the psychosocial aspects of the patient's post-discharge treatment and recovery program Qualifications A candidate must be a graduate of a social work curriculum (or related field) with at least a BSW. Should have two or more years of experience in all aspects of social service and discharge.
   
   If you are a current Kindred/RehabCare employee Click Here.Job: Social ServicesPrimary Location: CA-Santa Ana-Kindred Hospital - Santa AnaOrganization: 4825 - Kindred Hospital - Santa AnaShift: Day

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find social workers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any social workers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level social workers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit social workers, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates 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 social worker

   Once you've found the social 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.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new social worker. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

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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How much does it cost to hire a social worker?