Downsizing of the Nation's Labor Force and a Needed Social Work Response

While employers recognize that downsizings are not cyclical but rather strategic business decisions, there is not sufficient recognition of the importance of these human resources in the profitability and service quality in their organizations. The author highlights the challenge to the social work profession to sensitize management to the needs of their employees, both the released workers and the survivors. The author recommends strategies to sensitize employers to implement processes to humanize the consolidations occurring increasingly in the workforce. An emphasis is placed on the challenges to the social work profession in providing programs and services to America's businesses and employees.