Employment Specialist - Mental Health

The Mental Health Employment Specialist works as a member of multi-disciplinary teams that provide mental health, addictions outpatient treatment, and employment services. The Old Town Recovery Center offers a range of outreach-based, integrated, substance use, and case management services. The team works to address all treatment needs, including preventative services, crisis management, substance use treatment, medication management, physical health treatment, mental health treatment, accessing benefits and entitlements, accessing appropriate and affordable housing. This position has access to mental health billing and service records.

The Employment Access Center supports individuals who are formerly homeless and/or in recovery in obtaining and maintaining employment. The Employment Specialist is responsible for all areas of employment including career exploration, employment preparation, assistance with finding employment, job development, and job retention. This position will work closely with other service providers to coordinate services and ensure ongoing supports. This position involves collaborative program planning, quality management, and being a liaison with numerous employment programs.

Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm

Location: Old Town Recovery Center (33 NW Broadway, Portland, OR 97209)

Compensation: Starting at $23.36/hr

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Must be registered with MHACBO to meet, at minimum, QMHA-R requirements.
• Experience in workforce development highly preferred.
• Has the competencies necessary to:
  
  
  
  • Communicate effectively;
  • Understand addictions and mental health treatment and service terminology and to apply the concepts;
  • Provide psychosocial skills development; and
  • Implement interventions prescribed on a treatment plan.
  
  
  
  
• Must meet CCC privileging requirements as required by FTCA.
• Current CPR certification required prior to start.
• Must embrace the mission and philosophy of recovery and client centered treatment.
• Must possess a current driver's license, pass a DMV background check, and be designated an "acceptable" driver as outlined in Central City Concern's Fleet Safety Poligy. Must pass an initial drivers training within 60 days of being an approved driver and continued recertification training. Must maintain vehicle insurance coverage of a minimum of one hundred thousand dollars/three hundred thousand dollars personal auto liability coverage.
• Ability to adhere to Central City Concern's drug-free workplace which encourages a safe, healthy and productive work environment and strictly complies with the Drug-Free Work Place Act of 1988. An employee shall not, in the workplace, unlawfully manufacture, distribute, dispense, possess or use a controlled substance or alcohol.
• Must pass a pre-employment drug screen, TB test, and background check. This includes clearance by the DHS Background Check Unit.
• Must be able to perform considerable intra-city travel.
• Will be required to carry an agency cell phone for work use. Cell phone will be provided by Central City Concern.
• Must generally have the ability to bend, stoop, kneel, squat, twist, reach, pull and lift heavy objects and climb stairs, with reasonable or no accommodation.
• Must adhere to agency's non-discrimination policies.
• Ability to effectively interact with co-workers and clients with diverse ethnic backgrounds, religious views, cultural backgrounds, life-styles, and sexual orientations and treat each individual with respect and dignity.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Participate in outreach efforts to engage prospective clients/customers, including appointments, home visits, and community-based service.
• Provide assistance to customers in identifying areas of employment interest using a strengths-based orientation.
• Assist adult clients with disabilities find and keep competitive employment using the Supported Employment, IPS (Individual Placement and Support) model and follow the 8 principles of this model.
• Provide client assessment and develop employment/training plans.
• Monitor client progress. Counsel and guide clients in developing career and/or employment goals.
• Assist clients with long-term employment goals, create career profile, discusses client's preference for disclosure of disability status to employers, and develops individual employment plan with client.
• Provide retention services including on site job coaching to ensure client success and employer satisfaction. Explore with the employer and customer available alternatives to address barriers and focus on job retention.
• Job develop employment opportunities to match individual client needs by contacting and building relationships with employers. This includes developing relationships with employers, organizations, providers, community leaders, and advocacy groups in the community.
• Collaborate with community resource agencies to remove barriers, provide intervention and make referrals for issues including but not limited to mental health, drug and alcohol abuse, and emergency services.
• Establish relationship with partner agency at Vocational Rehabilitation.
• Work with internal service providers to assure coordinated and streamlined services.
• Synthesize information from diverse sources and act on information appropriately for each participant and program.
• Educate customer about benefits eligibility and how working may affect benefits.
• Participate in compliance, quality assurance and quality improvement activities as directed.
• Input and maintain accurate records of customer progress in job search, case management and employment using MS Word, Access and other software. Track program statistics in database with accuracy.
• Participate in clinical staff meetings and case conferences with team members in order to utilize interdisciplinary expertise and facilitate individual care plans for clients.
• Use culturally sensitive lens to guide all aspects of service delivery, ensuring that the impact of socio-political & cultural factors is consistently considered
• Monitor and assure that the health and safety needs of clients are met.
• Coordinate services with all members of client's support network.
• Driving is an essential function of this position.
• Maintain client records as required by program standards and funding requirements including documentation of clinical interactions & participation in developing individual care plans.
• Participate in regular clinical supervision, seeking additional supervision whenever necessary.
• Attend required meetings and mandatory CCC trainings in a timely manner.
• Adhere to all state and federal privacy and security regulations applicable to the program, and to CCC policies and agreements regarding confidentiality, privacy, and security. This includes immediately reporting any breach of protected health information or personal identification information of any person receiving CCC services by CCC or an outside provider to the CCC Compliance Department, as well as to your supervisor or their designee.

DESCRIPTION OF OTHER DUTIES:

• Perform other duties as assigned.

SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Basic knowledge and skills in counseling and assessment techniques with individuals and groups including assessing for risk of danger to self and others.
• Basic knowledge and skills in mental health and substance use treatment methods and crisis intervention.
• Ability to work effectively and efficiently in an environment subject to ambiguity and change.
• Basic knowledge of, or willingness to learn, evidenced-based practices (EBPs) and to gain awareness of EBPs limitations with non-dominate communities
• Willingness to learn the cultural, sociopolitical, and historical context of the community being served, and the impact of that context on health needs; ability to use this knowledge to apply a culturally specific lens to all aspects of service delivery.
• Knowledge and understanding of racism and other oppressions and their impact on individuals, families and communities.
• Ability to provide leadership including the ability to motivate and inspire people

Benefits at Central City Concern offered to our employees!

Central City Concern offers incredible benefits to our employees. We offer an extensive total rewards package to include base wages, medical, dental, vision, and voluntary plans. Central City Concern also takes employees' financial wellness into consideration and provides a rich retirement match.

• Generous paid time off plan beginning at 4 weeks of PTO accrual per year! Accrual amount/rate increases with longevity.
• Amazing 403(b) Retirement Savings plan with an employer match of 4.25% in your 1st year, 6% in the 2nd year, and 8% in your 3rd year!
• 11 Recognized Holidays + 2 Personal Holidays
• Comprehensive Medical, Vision, and Dental insurance coverage.
• Employer Paid Life, Short Term Disability, AND Long-Term Disability Insurance!

This description is intended to provide a snapshot of the work performed and is not designed to contain a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required for the position.

As an agency deeply rooted in recovery, part of our policy and commitment to a drug and alcohol-free workplace includes post-offer, and pre-employment drug screens. Please note we follow Federal Guidelines regarding prohibited substances, even for those legal at the state level.

CCC values and celebrates diversity in race, heritage, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, religion, age, and disability. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and we prioritize active inclusion of diverse staff.

Central City Concern is a second-chance employer and complies with applicable laws regarding the consideration of criminal background for employment purposes. Government regulations, contractual requirements, or the duties of this particular job may require CCC to conduct a background check and take appropriate action to address prior criminal convictions.