Child and Youth Worker Jobs

Where child and youth workers work with us

• Group homes and residential treatment — day-to-day support, de-escalation, routines and relationship-building with young people in care.
• In-home respite — giving parents of a child with complex needs a genuine break, on a schedule they can plan around.
• Schools and educational settings — behaviour support and one-to-one work alongside the school team.
• Community and youth programs — after-school, recreation and transitional support.
• Children’s home care teams — working alongside nursing where a child has both medical and behavioural needs. Children’s home care

What we need from you

• A Child and Youth Worker or Child and Youth Care diploma, or an equivalent qualification we can verify.
• Crisis prevention and de-escalation training — tell us which programme and when you last recertified.
• CPR and First Aid.
• Canadian criminal record clearance, including vulnerable sector screening.
• Medical clearance.
• Experience with the age group and the presentation you want to work with.

Child and youth care is not a regulated health profession in Ontario — there is no college and no protected title. That means the employer’s verification is the only real check, which is exactly why we do it properly and put it on file.

Tell us what you can hold, honestly

This is work where a bad match costs a young person something real.

A worker who is excellent with eight-year-olds in a community program is not automatically the right person for a residential unit with a history of physical aggression, and pretending otherwise helps nobody. We would rather place you somewhere you can do good work than fill a shift.

So we ask directly: what age group, what presentations, and what you have been trained and debriefed on. Nothing about that is a test — it is how the match gets made.

What you are entitled to, and what we are required to tell you

Worth knowing before you apply anywhere, not only here.

• You are an employee, not a contractor. Payroll deductions, WSIB coverage, EI and CPP contributions, and Employment Standards Act entitlements including vacation and public holiday pay.
• You never pay us a fee. Our fees are paid by the employer or the client. If any agency asks you for money to be placed, walk away.
• Postings must state expected pay. Since 1 January 2026, publicly advertised job postings in Ontario must include the expected compensation or a range, must say whether the posting is for an existing vacancy, and must disclose if artificial intelligence is used to screen applicants.
• Canadian experience cannot be required. Ontario prohibits Canadian experience requirements in publicly advertised job postings and their application forms.
• You get an answer after an interview. Employers must tell interviewed applicants whether a hiring decision was made, within 45 days of the last interview.

Ontario’s rules for publicly advertised job postings

Questions child and youth workers ask us