ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the social work employment in faith-based organizations, beginning with the decision to seek work in a faith-based organization and appointment processes, and then considering working conditions and issues of career progression within faith-based organizations. The working conditions and/or the expectations placed on employees in faith-based organizations can be challenging or perceived as unreasonable by some social workers. There is a range of reasons why social workers seek employment in faith-based organizations which can be grouped in respect of the social worker's sense of vocation, the characteristics of the organization, and pragmatic factors. The need to gain employment rather than a sense of vocation or desire to work in a specific agency was particularly evident among some of the Australian research participants who commenced work in faith-based organizations as newly qualified social work graduates. One issue around which organizations may have clear protocols concerns religious expression.
