counselor

gestionnaire ressources humaines

philanthropy manager

bilingual office manager

contract manager

Kids Help Phone

As a Crisis Responder at Kids Help Phone, I've had the profoundly rewarding experience of assisting young individuals in their most vulnerable moments. This role has been both challenging and enriching, offering me the opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of children and teens across the country.

Key Highlights:

Training and Support: The comprehensive training provided was exceptional, equipping me with the necessary skills to handle a variety of sensitive situations. Ongoing support from supervisors and peers has been a cornerstone of this role, ensuring that we're always prepared and well-guided.

Impactful Interactions: Engaging with kids and teens through text has been a deeply impactful experience. The ability to provide a listening ear, support, and resources to those in crisis has been both humbling and fulfilling.

Personal Growth: This role has significantly contributed to my personal and professional growth. It has enhanced my communication skills, empathy, and understanding of youth mental health challenges.

Community of Care: Working alongside a team of dedicated and compassionate individuals has been inspiring. The sense of community and shared purpose among the Crisis Responders is truly uplifting.

Flexibility: The flexibility to volunteer remotely has allowed me to balance this role with my other commitments effectively.

Challenges:

Emotional Intensity: The role can be emotionally demanding, dealing with complex and distressing situations. However, the support system in place helps in managing this aspect effectively.

Continuous Learning: The need to stay updated with the latest in mental health and crisis intervention can be challenging but is essential for providing the best support.

In conclusion, my time as a Crisis Responder at Kids Help Phone has been an incredibly valuable experience. It's not just about providing support; it's about learning, growing, and being part of a community that's making a real difference in young lives.

The work I did was so rewarding - helping youth and children in crisis, and I'm grateful that this organization exists. However, counsellors only had minutes after each call for administrative work (file notes...) and to prepare for the next call, which inevitably would be extremely difficult as the one just finished.
Dealing with extreme crises and performing suicide interventions on almost every call demands full attention and can be exhausting. It also requires some time to process what just transpired before picking up the phone again.
I was also told to finish calls within forty five minutes, which is not always reasonable if a child is still in danger and does not yet have a safety plan. I would not get off the phone until I felt satisfied that the child was as safe as possible or that a Children's Aid agent had been notified of the situation. I was reprimanded for this - not following their forty five minute rule.
I brought these issues up with management a few times but things didn't change, so I had to leave for my own mental health.
I hope they have since made changes as they treated us like call center employees trying to sell something when in actuality,  we were dealing with, and often saving, young people's lives.
Time, compassion and self care after tough calls are all essential to do a proper job.

What is the best part of working at the company?
In my experience, the best part of working at KHP is the strong team culture. Everyone genuinely cares about the work we do, and I always feel respected, heard, and supported. The organization truly lives its values, and it shows in the way colleagues and leadership collaborate to effectively show up for young folks and future generations.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The work can feel quick, and you need to stay adaptable, innovative, and ready to learn - which can be demanding at times. Even so, there’s a lot of support from colleagues, leaders, and the overall culture, which makes those challenges feel shared rather than overwhelming.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment and culture are incredibly supportive and mission‑driven. The team truly cares about the work they do and about each other. Collaboration, respect, and compassion are at the core of how people work together. Even with the fast pace and constant learning the job requires, the strong support from colleagues, leaders, and the overall culture makes it a positive and uplifting place to work.

Been working at KHP for over 7 years now. 
The organization's mandate is honourable and we really do make a difference in the lives of kids all over Canada. 
But as employees (mostly full time), you should expect to feel constantly examined, pressured and asked to do the work of 5 people. The need for the service is ever growing but the management is unable to keep their employees, therefore we are constantly understaffed. The load of work is just insane. 

This organization does not respect  its employees' needs and limits, let alone their mental health. Management is ran by a bunch of people who are way underqualified and who don't understand what it's like to be a counsellor on a 24/7 mental health helpline.

The salary and the benefits are amazing though, which is the main reason why the employees are still here. Bring the hourly rate to 18$ and you will see more than half the people walk out the door.

This organization has been running since 1989, and it was only 2 years ago that we unionized. This should give you an idea.

The service is important and needed.  However, the counselors are treated poorly. We are overworked and underpaid.  You could have 10-12 sessions a per shift and they could all be high risk and you are expected to take the next client right away. It operates like a call center even though you are dealing with such high crisis information. There are quotas that are expected of you which puts a lot of pressure on you. You can only counsel how they tell you to and there is no room to really help the client. If you are applying for a counselor position, and If you want a place to burn out apply here. If you want to take care of your mental health stay as far away from this place as possible. Management acts like the care about the counselors well being but they really don't.  There are barely any support systems in place for the counselors. 

Staff are way overworked; wasn’t uncommon to have 8-11 ‘sessions’ in one shift. Also was not uncommon that at least 3-4 of these were suicidal clients which was exhausting yet downplayed by management who expected you to be available within 2-3 mins of the last one. They micromanage all of your time - must account for every second of your shift. Poor work/life balance as busiest times were of course on evening and weekends but scheduling could have helped with this. They also tell you exactly what to say and how to say it. Which was annoying at best and harmful at worst when they assume they know better how to talk to clients.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Supportive and growth culture. Excellent training and ongoing regular supervision  provided.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Challenges related to supporting youth in crisis. Potential for vicarious trauma and empathy strain if not practicing self care and seeking out support as needed.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Amazing! Friendly, supportive. Expectations are clear and there is a growth mindset, strength based approach for supervision.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Work remotely from home. Log in at start time and support kids and youth in need of support. Single session counselling.

They hire new people every month, and so many people leave. If you’re overnight or part time counsellors, good luck. No benefits, you can barely take any vacations. They deny your request based on coverage needs. It’s not counsellor’s responsibility that you can find coverage. Most managers are supportive, but there are some who aren’t and will question your use of sick time. Even retail work wasn’t as crazy as like this. The only good thing is you work from home, but it can be a downside since you basically only talk to people with mental health challenges all day. 

This is an excellent opportunity to gain basic work experience or to complete your required volunteer hours for high school. I continue to volunteer at this organization well into university as it provides a various arrangement of duties to perform, while having the satisfaction of knowing your effort makes a difference. This is genuinely one of the few positions ive taken over the years and actually enjoyed doing.

I did an internship with UBC and I absolutely loved it... please keep in mind this was an unpaid internship and purely volunteer hours. I loved the cause as it hit close to home, and the managers were awesome people that were cool. There were a few mishaps due to lack of direct communication between myself and the managers which led to confusion, but it was cleared out when I asked them about it. An amazing cause!

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