Newsletter: Safety
Today’s newsletter is going to be a little different from normal. Our thoughts continue to be with the entire staff of Rep. Connolly and their families as they recover from this week’s act of political violence.
As we mention at the top of every one of our webinars, Katherine and I are former caseworkers—we’ve been right where you are, thinking about how any one of our close calls or dismissed hunches could have gone differently.
We just wanted to take a second to say that we understand and respect the choice you make every day to come to work and open up the doors to the American people. That takes a lot of courage.
Below, we’re going to wrap up some ways to share what’s on your mind, and some starting points to think about your team’s safety.
How are you?
We know firsthand that the burdens of casework can sometimes be difficult to talk about: while there are parallels with other industries, the specific dynamics of casework are weird enough that even those closest to you may not understand how it feels to do your work.
You’re not alone. And to keep you healthy and safe to do this work for the long term, it’s important to find outlets to talk about what you’re experiencing:
Employee Assistance Program
As always, EAP on both the House and Senate sides are great resources for individual counseling. Senate EAP also offers resources specifically for frontline staff, including caseworker forum calls initiated by caseworkers after the traumatic experiences they had during the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Anonymous Survey from POPVOX Foundation
If you’re not ready to talk with an internal office but would still like to vent somewhere, please consider us a resource. We have an anonymous google survey, and we’re always happy to set up 1:1 time to just listen or to help you figure out where else to look for answers. Reach out at anne@popvox.org or reply to this email.
US Capitol Historical Society Oral History Project
For another avenue to share your insights and experiences, the US Capitol Historical Society is still conducting interviews with staff and family members on their experience of January 6th. Interview transcripts can be public, permanently confidential, or confidential for a set period of time (e.g. 5, 10, 50 years). Several caseworkers we’ve spoken to have mentioned what a cathartic, validating experience these interviews were.
Safety Starting Points
Here’s the deal: we know that if you are already feeling unsafe, it can be frustrating to have someone hand you self-help resources. But ultimately, your ability to serve constituents is dependent on your ability to keep your team and constituents in your office safe as well.
Think of safety and crisis planning as a foundational part of casework, just like setting up your CRM software or writing phone scripts for interns, and recruit every member of your team into playing a role. The resources below are far from comprehensive, but we hope they’re helpful as starting points—and please let us know if there are any resources your team has found helpful that we can share in future newsletters.
NASW Guide/Checklists
While casework and social work are two different things, there are some parallels in safety risks when working with the general public. Our team worked with the National Association of Social Workers to develop a quick safety guide for district staff based on NASW’s Code of Ethics and practice. This has checklists for setting up new offices, assigning safety duties, and planning for disasters. Many are small changes that your team can make immediately.
Senate Education and Training and House Congressional Staff Academy
Official Senate and House safety training should be regularly available and go beyond “dealing with difficult constituents.” If the training offered does not address your concerns, we encourage you to ask that state/district specific safety training be developed and provided.
Workplace Rights Quick Guide
For more on your rights as an employee of the Legislative Branch, we created a quick guide to understanding your rights. This also includes tips on speaking to your managers/employees about rights and resources.
OCWR: Anonymously request a Health and Safety Inspection
For an outside (but internal to the House/Senate) perspective on safety in your office, you can also anonymously request a Health and Safety Inspection from the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights. These OSH inspections cover hazards including:
Insufficient emergency exits
Irregular or incomplete emergency training
Obstructed exits and more.
Note that staff anonymously requesting an inspection will still be required to provide a name and contact information to OCWR for follow-up. For questions, you can also contact OCWR’s confidential advisor team.
Recruit Local Supports
You already know that USCP and Sergeant at Arms are wonderful resources, and should be your first port of call for safety questions. However, just as with casework, it’s smart to cultivate a wide range of local resources you can call on in different situations. Some helpful ones may include:
Your local police department
your local PD/FD will be the first responder to your office in the event of an emergency. Take the time to establish a solid relationship ahead of time, including possibly making sure they know how many staff and interns work in your office. Some local PDs, especially teams with embedded mental health support services, are also happy to act as a resource for casework teams when expecting contact from a constituent who may be agitated or volatile.Your local FBI field office
Check in with your local field office, particularly their Community Relations Unit, about services they may offer, both preventive and responsive.Other local and online trainings
As the Marines say, proper preparation prevents poor performance. Consider seeking out or having your caseworkers look for relevant trainings in your area and online to complement what you already receive from the USCP and SAA. We’ve rounded up some below, and a list of key words to look for:Personal Safety and Preparedness: Congressional Management Foundation. Includes excellent approachable, easy-to-use tips on self-defense, specific to Congress.
Threat Assessment: Ohio Attorney General. Comprehensive guide to assessing and responding to threats, specifically in a school context but much of the material translates.
Other places to look:
Local police departments/police academies
Local martial arts academies (especially ones that already have experience training law enforcement)
Local rape crisis centers
Local VA medical centers (which may be willing to do veteran-focused training that your team can generalize)
Keywords to look up/ask for may include:
Threat assessment
De-escalation/negotiation tactics
Target-hardening
Trauma-informed care
Upcoming Events
Bringing Interns and Fellows into your Casework Operation
District and state offices know that interns are invaluable for handling typical tasks like answering phones, opening mail, and staffing the front desk. But it can be hard in the constant churn of three new classes a year to find appropriate tasks for interns in a casework program.
Storytelling for Caseworkers I: Listening for What's Important
Caseworkers bear witness to the stories of constituents experiencing the federal government. Told effectively, these stories can build support for policy change through legislation and oversight.
Storytelling for Caseworkers II: Telling Constituent Stories for Policy Impact
In this session, we will take lessons from The Moth to learn what makes a compelling story, how to respectfully share the difficult and intimate moments of constituents' lives, and explore what storytelling can teach us about listening.
Burnout & Care
Caseworkers' willingness to go above and beyond to help constituents in distress can easily cross over into burnout and compassion fatigue.
We’ll be back to our regular programming next week—stay tuned for tips on handling interns and fellows.
Hang in there,
Anne Meeker
Deputy Director
