It's their job to keep kids safe, but now it might be on the line. Millions of dollars are being cut from the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. Right now employees at the Rock Island DCFS office have been told 21 jobs will be cut. The office serves Rock Island, Mercer, and Henry counties. Many of the positions being eliminated include case workers and investigators, some of the people families rely on most.
"We might start seeing stories about this child injured, this child sexually assaulted, and this child died. That's what we want to avoid," said Patrick Perion, an ASCME Union Steward for DCFS.
Perion said slashing staff could have some serious implications. He said the way things look right now, all of the intact family counselors will go.
"These are people out there who are trying to raise these kids,keep them together, and help keep kids safe. The thinner we get stretched the less likely that will happen."
Perion said without these people going into homes to check on kids and help families, the agency will have to make some tough decisions.
"On borderline cases, cases we might have left children home with a caseworker, now we have to put those kids in foster care."
Perion said with fewer case workers, families could also lose access to services they depend on, like sexual abuse counseling.
"If that child isn't getting service, not getting counseling they need, that can lead to some tough times in the future for kids."
Meanwhile, the state of Illinois is already struggling to keep up with cases. Perion said right now the state is violating a federal decree for having too few investigators. They look into allegations of abuse or neglect and the Rock Island office will be losing two. He said while he understands the state has to make cuts somewhere, this is not the way to do it.
"It's devastating for most of us. We hope nothing tragic happens to children, but anytime a community is affected in this way it leads to problems."
Governor Pat Quinn has talked about bringing back some of the funding, but that will not be voted on until November.
