King County Department of Community and Human Services (DCHS) is pleased to share our new Inflation Rate Adjustment Policy for Human Services Contracts. DCHS will only achieve needed results for the community through a robust and representative human services workforce with knowledge, experience, and skill to deliver high quality programs. This policy is one step toward reversing long-standing norms and instead moves the department toward covering the full cost of services when possible.
Over the past year, DCHS developed a DCHS Inflation Rate Adjustment Policy that is responsive to the 2023 King County Nonprofit Wage & Benefits Survey Report and the King County Nonprofit Employee Engagement Survey Report, as well as the 2023 University of Washington Wage Equity Study that together show how underinvestment in the nonprofit workforce impacts programs, services, and the overall human services sector. The surveys show chronic underinvestment in the nonprofit workforce is a driver for turnover and that 71 percent of nonprofit workers are considering leaving their position because of pay. The policy is now official and will be applied to department contracts as appropriate.
The nonprofit sector is under significant strain while the needs in our community continue to rise. Historically, human services funders (including local governments like King County) have only paid a portion of the true cost of services.
Partnerships with providers are one of our great strengths. Investing in people is the only path forward. DCHS must do what we can and what is allowable to modernize practices and pay people livable wages. We have heard from our provider community and see the impact when they are unable to fully provide the services our community needs.
This policy is not applicable to all contracts and can be applied when funding sources are sufficient. DCHS will assess all funding sources available, to maximize the implementation of this policy across all possible fund sources when council adopted budgets and plans, or other external fund sources, allow it.
It takes people to care for people. Human services at its core is about people and depends upon trust. DCHS recognizes this, and along with the inflation policy, is actively working on implementing strategies across key initiatives to address workforce shortages and invest in people, including:
- Best Starts for Kids invested in child care workers through the King County Child Care Subsidy Program and Workforce Demonstration project. King County and the City of Seattle are collaborating to better meet the needs of families and providers, including a retention payment project that reached nearly 90 percent of the child care workforce in 2023.
- The Crisis Care Centers initiative made the workforce a key pillar of the overall initiative. The CCC levy workforce strategy will invest $164 million over the 9-year levy period. The initiative currently has a workforce request for proposals (RFP) open through October 16, 2024 to invest in behavioral health career pathways. In addition, the initiative is looking to overhaul the system in the following ways:
- Promote career pathways to access higher education, credentialing, training, and wraparound supports.
- Increase wages and retain more representative people in community-based behavioral care.
- Invest in apprenticeship programs – focused pathways include behavioral health technician, substance use disorder professional, and peer counselor.
- Reduce costs for workers – investing in a full range of benefits for workers, including insurance, childcare funding, caregiving and fees or tuition associated with behavioral health training and certification.
- Peers – King County is making investments in peer-led programs because peers are an integral part of care, knowing that peers have the lived experience of someone they may support.
- Veterans, Seniors and Human Services Levy renewed in 2023, invested in the Human Services Workforce Stabilization Strategy. This strategy aims to improve staff recruitment and retention within nonprofit organizations providing human services in King County. This strategy will invest $57 million in King County’s human services workforce over the course of the levy.