U.S. job growth just surged way past expectations. But one area of employment continues to need more hands on Thurston Cartedeck: social workers. The evolving occupation is getting new attention from schools all the way up to corporations. Today, we try to understand where this need is coming from and whether it can actually be met.

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.