Character Analysis
The Maitland's caseworker, Juno, is a no-nonsense kind of dead lady.
You know the type.
By the time Adam and Barbara run into her, it's clear she's been around the afterlife block many, many times.
ADAM: How long do you suppose we were waiting there?
JUNO: Three months. I'd almost given up on you. I was about to leave. I do have other clients.
BARBARA: Are you Juno, our caseworker?
JUNO: Yes. I evaluate individual cases and determine if help is needed, deserved, and available.
ADAM: Are you available?
JUNO: No.
She doesn't have a whole lot of pity for the Maitlands, but she does give them some solid advice. They definitely should not call Betelgeuse—they ignore that. And they should try to scare the Deetzes out of the house by themselves—they give up on that by the end. What's the use of having a caseworker if you're not gonna listen to her?
If Juno seems a little prickly and chainsmokerish, it might be because she's feeling a little trapped in her job. Otho mentions at one point that people who commit suicide become civil servants in the afterlife. Judging by the huge slit in Juno's throat, we're guessing that applies to her.
A note on the actress: Sylvia Sidney was a legendary screen actress from 1930s Hollywood with a career that spanned 70 years. Tim Burton was a huge fan, and it was casting choices like this, even for small comic roles, that gave this film its energy. Burton was unfortunately prescient in filming Sidney with smoke coming out of her slit throat. She died of throat cancer, likely a result of her heavy smoking habit.