Social Worker

The Urban Justice Center Mental Health Project (MHP) seeks a social worker with strong advocacy skills to work with clients with mental health concerns on our interdisciplinary team.

Who Are We?

MHP is a team of attorneys, social workers, advocates, and peer specialists, dedicated to disrupting and dismantling the cycle of hospitalization, homelessness, and incarceration that traps low-income New Yorkers living with serious mental health concerns. We intervene at all parts of this cycle. We work to: secure financial and medical benefits to prevent homelessness and hospitalization; provide peer advocacy and social work support to empower clients in the community; collaborate on impact litigation; ensure proper discharge planning occurs prior to release from jail and psychiatric hospitals; connect people to the appropriate organizations through advice and referrals; and host community workshops to educate people about their rights and how to advocate for themselves and their peers.

Job Summary and Qualifications

The position will be part of an interdisciplinary team who provide advocacy services for adults with mental health concerns with low-income. MHP’s services currently include supportive housing applications, shelter advocacy, eviction prevention, discharge planning from psychiatric hospitals, and applications for government benefits. The Mental Health Project seeks a candidate with the following qualifications:

• Experience navigating and working within governmental administrative systems (e.g. HRA, SSA, Medicaid, SNAP, cash assistance
• Commitment to anti-oppressive, anti-racist, and other social justice work;
• Excellent advocacy skills;
• Strong time-management skills, detail oriented, and efficient in prioritizing tasks;
• Experience and commitment to providing client-centered and trauma-informed advocacy and case management services;
• An understanding and openness to using harm reduction approaches in client work;
• Great communication and interpersonal skills;
• Ability to be collaborative and work with a team;
• Strong writing and verbal skills;
• Proficiency in Spanish is preferred, but not required;
• Three to five years of relevant work experience;
• Master of Social Work (MSW) degree.

Responsibilities:

• Advocate for MHP’s clients across a broad range of needs, including social security disability benefits, eviction and homeless prevention, public assistance, and hospital discharge planning;
• Support clients with eviction prevention and housing stabilization services, including completion and submission of rental assistance and supportive housing applications (e.g., HRA 2010E);
• Conduct crisis management and suicidal ideation assessments;
• Assist clients in accessing and maintaining public benefits including SNAP, cash assistance, social security, Medicaid, including support with recertifications and reinstatements;
• Connect clients to mental health treatment providers and care management services via Health Homes
• Prevent eviction or stabilize new housing through rental assistance and applying for supportive housing using the HRA 2010E application;
• Preserve the rights of psychiatrically admitted clients through advocating for a safe discharge from the hospital;
• Facilitate presentations and trainings for clients and community-based providers;
• Maintain client records in physical files and electronic databases;
• Other social work tasks as needed to serve MHP’s clients.
• Support eviction prevention and housing stabilization efforts, including rental assistance applications and supportive housing applications (e.g., HRA 2010E)

The Mental Health Project is currently on a hybrid working schedule. The work schedule will depend on and may change given the Project’s needs.

Excellent benefits.

This is a bargaining unit position represented for collective bargaining purposes by the Association of Legal Advocates and Attorneys, International Union UAW, Local 2325.

Proficiency in Spanish is preferred