Staff Attorney, Legal Helpline

Fully benefited, 30 hour/week position with anticipated salary range of $60,000 - $67,400, commensurate with qualifications, location, and experience

Classification: Class Code 2051 or 2052 / Exempt / Benefited / Remote / Contract

ABOUT THE CENTER FOR WORKLIFE LAW

The Center for WorkLife Law is a national advocacy and research organization that advances gender and racial equity by strengthening legal rights for pregnant people and family caregivers. Our work seeks to ensure all people have the freedom to build and maintain economic security through employment and educational opportunities, without having to sacrifice their health or their loved ones’ care. As a Center of the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco, WorkLife Law provides direct assistance to workers and students in need and addresses structural inequality by changing public policy at the state and national levels.

THE ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The Staff Attorney will be primarily responsible for managing and providing services on WorkLife Law’s free legal helpline serving workers who need assistance with employment issues related to pregnancy, abortion and pregnancy loss, lactation, and family caregiving, including parenting, eldercare, and disability care. In addition, the Staff Attorney will develop know-your-rights resources and practical tools for workers and their allies. The Staff Attorney will also regularly share with the WorkLife Law team their insights gleaned from speaking with workers on the helpline to inform the Center’s policy priorities, research, and advocacy. The Staff Attorney may also support similar efforts to support pregnant and caregiving postsecondary students, as capacity allows. This is a fully-benefited employee position with a 12-month contract that will renew depending on the availability of funding.

Typical duties and responsibilities include:

• Legal Helpline – Direct Assistance: Provide direct assistance to workers on WorkLife Law’s helpline with compassion, resourcefulness, cultural competency, legal expertise, and clarity. Providing this assistance is the primary responsibility for this role and will account for the majority of the Staff Attorney’s work time. The Staff Attorney will provide information about legal rights, as well as practical support on how to access workplace accommodations and leave and relief from employment discrimination. The Staff Attorney will be responsible for analyzing callers’ situations by listening closely, reviewing documents, and applying relevant laws. With assistance as necessary from WorkLife Law senior staff, the Staff Attorney will formulate a strategy for serving each caller and will engage callers throughout the process. Depending on the needs of the individual caller, services provided will range from answering questions about legal rights and providing know-your-rights materials to writing letters to employers and providing ongoing support over many months.
• Legal Helpline – Management: WorkLife Law’s helpline is a national “warm-line” where workers reach out via email/online form or voicemail. The Staff Attorney will be responsible for triaging incoming helpline calls, ensuring callers receive a timely response, maintaining helpline records (including demographic data), and improving helpline policies and processes as needed.
• Resource Creation: Create and update documents explaining the law for workers, as well as documents explaining employer obligations for use by helpline callers when negotiating with their employers. As time permits, the Staff Attorney may assist in the creation of other WorkLife Law practical and educational materials for a range of stakeholders. Resource creation includes researching and fact checking to ensure materials remain up to date, seeking and incorporating feedback from stakeholders to ensure the materials meet their needs, and translating complicated legal ideas into accessible language that is appropriate for the audience at hand.
• Policy Advocacy: Regularly update WorkLife Law team on trends identified via helpline calls as they relate to the Center’s policy advocacy. Strategize with WorkLife Law team to ensure the experiences of workers are informing WorkLife Law’s policy advocacy and research. Identify helpline callers interested in sharing their experiences to create policy change.

REQUIREMENTS

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

• J.D. degree and admitted to practice law in any U.S. state
• 3+ years of relevant experience required, although more is preferred
• Experience providing direct services to people in crisis in a culturally competent manner required

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES

• Knowledge of employment law (particularly PWFA, PUMP, ADA, Title VII, and FMLA or state-law equivalents) strongly preferred
• Commitment to the goals and values of WorkLife Law
• Strong legal research skills and proficiency with Lexis and/or Westlaw
• Ability to understand complex legal concepts and thoughtfully translate them verbally and in writing for lay audiences in an accessible way
• Effective organization, time, and project management skills with excellent attention to detail and a nimbleness to shift between tasks as needs evolve
• Ability to speak with people in crisis with compassion and cultural sensitivity
• Adaptable and resourceful, with an eagerness to problem-solve
• Desire to work in a group that prioritizes open communication, work-life balance, and positive relationships; and
• Fluency in Spanish or another language spoken by a large group of marginalized workers in the U.S. is a plus

The skills listed above are comprehensive, and we understand there are great candidates who possess only a subset of those skills, or who have other important skills. If you match some of these skills, please do not hesitate to apply.