youth worker

program supervisor

social worker

family support worker

clinical therapist

Key Assets

I worked at Key Assets for over 3 years. The only reason it was so long was because I was looking for another job and the only good thing was medical benefits. 

They do not care about your own well-being. The don’t care if they have you schedule every single day (with no break) even in it’s a 3 hour shift one day (supervised access) and 12 the next. They will try and guilt you into working on any day you have off, and they hold it against you if you don’t get take the shift. Room for movement was huge when I first started. It was told that you could move up if you prove you’re doing a good job... not true. I was told, even after I got good reviews every month that I had to be there over a year to become in a lead role... when I left that team to go to another, a girl who was there maybe 3 months got promoted and hired as lead. I loved my job and how rewarding it was when you see the young people succeed. It’s very challenging but if you know what your doing you’ll love working with the kids & most staff are awesome to work with, minus 99.9% of management from team supervisor and up. Single staffing is a HUGE issue, it’s actually a reason a staff member I  know had to leave Key Assets and because of long term effects of the assault from a young person, if it was doubled staffed, it would have been 100% preventable. 

Unfortunately Key Assets seemed to be one of the best places to work when you start off, but soon and you sign your name to become an employee, the nagging to work a shift, the constant “forced to stay” the lack of communication with on call make you want to wish you never applied.

Very different approach than other residential facilities (individual living arrangements) that seems to benefit the youth in some aspects. A lot more opportunity to be a leader (make and implement decisions) due to management being very detached and uninvolved - which honestly can be beneficial IF you have a strong team of skilled youth care workers. 

The down side to this is that most new hires receive one single 8-hour orientation shift provided by another youth care worker on the floor who has little to no knowledge of policies/procedures, care plans, licensing requirements or necessary information about the youth’s challenging behaviours from a clinical perspective. 

Insurance benefits are fairly good and vacation time is built quickly. Another down side is that vacation rarely gets approved as supervisors do not prioritize supporting their full time teams which leads to burn-out and high turnover rates - which unfortunately negatively affects the youth in care. 

If you’re looking for a casual position to pick up shifts now and then that provides fair compensation, and you have patience and adaptability then this is a good place to work. If you’re looking for a rewarding, safe, and challenging career with a supportive and collaborative team, I recommend looking elsewhere. 

Worst company I have ever worked for. Management are all clicks and are not shy in showing their favouritism to employees that they like. No matter how hard you work you are never praised for it and more than likely criticized. Next to no communication from any of the administrative staff. Very judgemental in regards to personal situations and personal lives. Say they are supportive and promote mental health but only make it worse. Are not afraid to get rid of you if they don’t agree with you and pick who they want to remain employees. Does not matter how long you have been there, they can and will get rid of you without any notice at any time, no matter how good of a worker you are and how good of a relationship you have with the youth. 


More like a friendship click than anything but if you become friends with someone else in the company you are judged for it, yet management is allowed to be without batting an eye. Rumours get spread around the company despite some confidential information involved and when you try and speak to management about it they deny everything and stick up for the other person/people. 

Says they are non judgemental but is the total opposite of such. Judges you for your life choices and are not scared to get rid of you for it. 


If there was a change in management/senior leadership the company may be better. 

As many of the other reviews state, I would suggest you think twice before applying/accepting a job here.  It is a very toxic work environment where you are afraid to have an opinion; especially one that does not line with upper management.  I witnessed many long standing employees leave due to this however it was often masked as disgruntled employees who were unable to handle a change of leadership.  Employees who voice concerns or opinions are silenced or let go due to "restructuring". 

When I first started here, I had confidence in my leadership team and felt supported and guided by Management.  I knew if I needed help, I had a group of people willing to jump in to support me.  I knew if I didn't have the answers, my manager did.  This is no longer the case and has resulted in waiting weeks/months for an answer to very simple questions due to manager/directors inability to make decisions independently.

The best interest of children is not the focus anymore and the difficulty faced when advocating makes it hard to believe you work at an organization that prides itself in providing quality care for children and youth.  Front line staff members are not respected or appreciated in most cases unless you're one of the lucky ones to have a supportive supervisor. 


I started with Key Assets as a carer with the hopes of changing lives for foster children. I wanted them to be part of my family. There was no training for when I started so I used my own instincts and had great success with my kids. I had been told and I quote, “whatever you’re doing, keep doing it”, 
I was briefed the bare minimum of the kids past and after 3 years caring for them, things began to take a devastating turn. I begged and pleaded for help in self harm and suicide prevention, only to be tossed to this one and that one. Exchanged supervisors more than you’d believe and had a SW fresh out of school with zero experience. 
I had so much respect for management in the beginning but you soon realize how gutless they are and you are unsupported. They tell you that you matter, you do NOT! Don’t even get me started on the unrealistic spending of budgets within this organization. I’ve seen it all with employees double dipping and making a ton of income with their own personal real estate. 
After the breakdown, I sought legal advice but you can never get your say or tell your story on these horrible people because of “confidentiality”. 
Anyways, looks like most of the trash was taken out..

I left banking to join what I thought would be a more purposeful, less bureaucratic environment where I'd be able to help support at-risk youth in my community.

What I found instead was a company that is mired in petty office politics, penny pinching budgetary practices and most importantly a total absence of support for staff. Policy and procedure is applied when convenient for management, and ignored when not. Mid level management (supervisors and regional managers) are expected to handle the responsibilities of multiple jobs and with a moratorium on overtime, the work does not get done. 

Worst of all, the children in the care of this company come last. They are a secondary concern at best for upper management. Despite an incredibly dedicated staff, the roadblocks put in place by the people making the rules make it next to impossible to provide these children with the help they need. I cannot in good faith recommend anyone seek employment with this organization. 

The general job at Key Assets as a Child and Youth Worker is an amazing position in which you make a genuine contribution to youth and their development. 

However management in this company only cares about money and coverage, be prepared to work multiple 24+ hour shifts with no sleep to be told to get over it by management. The only reason this job is worth it is for the youth you are able to support, they are amazing clients and most days can be spent with little to no interaction with management. 

When it comes to client treatment plans management does not include Child and Youth Workers in this process, The CYCs in this company are who support the youth daily and their suggestions should be taken into account. 

Lastly the company is extremely cliquey, if you are not a ‘favourite’ employee you will never get promoted. You will have almost no chance at progressing your career in this company unless you are close to them.

This has to be one of the WORST companies to work at. Zero work life balance, zero support from management, as if this field of work isn't challenging enough. Do you expect to be off work on your SCHEDULED days off? Not at this company. This company basically expects you to work 24 hours of forced over time, and will give you attitude if you complain about it. We all understand that you need to be flexible in this line of work, but telling you that you don't get to go home after a 24 hour shift, and saying "people get stuck, there's nothing we can do about it"? That is not flexibility, that is taking advantage of your employees due to management not knowing how to run a company. They have ZERO respect or appreciation for staff. They preach work life balance in trainings, and they lecture you about how important self care is, but once you're on the floor, they couldn't care less about you. Management is TOXIC! Working here will make you never want to work in this field again. Do yourself a favor and AVOID this place at all cost!!!

This workplace is absolutely toxic. At first you will hear great things, and they do offer some good training, however management right to the top is absolutely horrendous and only has your back when it’s convenient for them. Very dangerous place to work. Most places you work by yourself with extremely troubled and violent teens. The schedule and hours are never consistent and you never get them in advance. It is life consuming when you work for this company and they guilt you into long hours and look down on you or give you an even worse schedule to follow if you don’t. No, this is not coming from a disgruntled employee, not once did I ever receive a negative review or “spoken to”. From my time with this organization I have actually decided to change careers. After over 10 years of working in this field, which I absolutely loved, they have ruined my career. The list is endless and I know of many individuals who feel the same after leaving. Shameful. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
Best part about working at Key Assets is the youth and the youth centred care approach. How management works endlessly to meet their needs. It could never be done without the dedication of so many incredible child and youth care workers. Also, there is so much opportunity to advance within the company if that’s what you’re looking for. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Not taking the work home with you and having boundaries. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment can be tough so trying to have something prepared for the day, refresh your skills and the culture can be gossipy at times so stay focused and communicate effectively. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Follow programming, communicating, collaborating, planning, teaching skills, listening, all for the good of our youth.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Youth worker 54 salaries reported	$26.82 per hour
Program supervisor 11 salaries reported	$73,503 per year
Social worker 6 salaries reported	$55,534 per year
Family support worker 4 salaries reported	$57,467 per year
Clinical therapist 1 salary reported	$84,404 per year

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