COMMUNITY HOUSING SPECIALIST

Pay rates for Union positions are set in the Collective Bargaining Agreement with SEIU Local 521. Each position has a total of six steps, Step 1 (entry level) through Step 6 (15 years of employment with the organization). Union staff are promoted from Step 1 to Step 2 upon their one-year anniversary. The current Step 1 rate for this position is $34.21 / hr, and the current Step 6 rate for this position is $37.77 / hr.

• In addition to our competitive salaries, we pay a shift differential for certain shifts in our 24-hour programs as follows : (Only 1 differential -whichever is highest will apply at a time).
• 6% additional pay for overnight (NOC) shift from 11 pm to 7 am
• 4.5% additional pay for evening shift from 5 : 30 pm to 10 : 59 pm
• 4.5% additional pay for weekend shifts from 12 : 01 am on Saturday thru 11 : 59pm on Sunday

We offer a competitive package of employee benefits for 30 to 40-hour week positions. You will receive a defined contribution amount of $14,580 per year. (prorated for part-time employees working less than 40 hours per week) to purchase the benefits of your choice on a cafeteria plan basis. Any amount of this defined contribution not used towards your benefits will be paid to you as taxable earnings. We offer a retirement plan with a generous employer match starting at 4% after one year of employment. Our paid time off is also more generous than many employers with vacation time accruing up to 25 days per year, 6 days of sick time per year and 12 paid holidays.

The benefits offered in our cafeteria plan are as follows :

• Medical benefits -Kaiser, ranging from $0 Deductible Plan with $15 Copay to $2,850 Deductible Plan with Health Savings Account (H.S.A.)
• Dental benefits -Guardian : 1 dental HMO and 2 PPOs
• Vision benefits - 2 options from Guardian VSP : a standard vision plan and an enhanced vision plan

PRINCIPAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES :

• Provide mental health, rehabilitation and case management services in collaboration with an assigned case manager to assist and support clients in all areas of daily independent living.

Develop and / or implement individual service and treatment plans.

• Administer client Self-Sufficiency Matrix according to program requirements
• Provide service to clients and clients' families in linkage with professional and community resources.

Liaise / advocate for clients with outside agencies; help and educate clients with researching outside, independent living and making the most of community resources; liaise with representatives of those resources, such as property managers and training organizations, on behalf of clients;

• Work collaboratively and cooperatively with indentified Lead Agency in the Care Coordination Project
• Conduct telephone and face-to-face interviews with clients for housing placement and follow up on their independent living status; help them with their interviews for housing placement;
• Inform clients' parole officers, probation agents, conservators, and case managers of their placement in housing;
• Provide assistance to enable clients to return to work;
• Coordinate care with other programs and contact case managers if clients show changes in behavior; refer clients to non-Momentum therapists, if appropriate;
• Work with clients' families and educate them on mental health issues, facilitating the assistance process toward successful transitions.
• Provide medical and benefits follow-up assistance to clients.

Obtain a primary care physician, coordinating care with medical doctors, if needed;

• Assist with medical issues, schedules, and transportation;
• Facilitate with client insurance benefits to expedite treatment;
• Field questions from other staff members on benefits.
• Interface directly with clients and provide counseling, particularly during times of conflict and crisis intervention.

Monitor clients' independent living skills; assess their stability; help clients with learning problem-solving, socialization, and coping skills;

• Assist in budgeting and financial planning; address health and safety issues, how to respond to common emergencies, and medication education;
• Encourage clients' creativity, self-empowerment, and understanding their diagnosis and / or illness.
• Facilitate group and one-on-one house meetings with client residents to discuss and assess progress.
• Perform house inspections on a regular basis.
• Participate in management of team / program discretionary resources available to meet client needs.
• Complete the clinical records and other documentation, processes, and procedures that enable clients to receive these services in accordance with agency, payor and regulatory requirements, utilizing paper or computer technology.

Perform administrative admissions and / or discharge paperwork and procedures.

Assess clients for admission, benefit status, and clinical appropriateness for housing; coordinate admittance details; communicate with referral sources to complete housing applications;

• Work with clients to assess discharge options; arrange case conference for discharge; schedule appointments and interviews for discharge programs.
• Enter and maintain up-to-date clinical documentation for each client.

Update client files with case notes and HMIS Self-Sufficiency Matrix; enter hours via computer on a timely basis.

• Perform general office work, including electronic and telephonic communications and processing of timecards.
• Assist client with obtaining housing through the selection and negotiation of a lease, which may be for scattered site apartment units.
• Perform the housing search to identify and secure the units needed for the individuals identified for the Care Coordination Project (CCP)
• Provide transportation in personal or agency vehicles, including, but not limited to, the transport of clients and or program supplies, for agency business.
• Perform First Aid in emergency situations.

OTHER DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES :

• Provide appropriate consultation and back-up to support other staff in responding to client crises.
• Attend and participate in staff, program, agency and community meetings and training; conduct trainings, as needed.
• Ensure compliance with applicable health and safety or other regulatory requirements.
• Ensure program facilities and workstations are clean and well kept.
• Assist client with obtaining housing through the selection and negotiation of a lease, which may be for scattered site apartment units.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILL, AND ABILITIES REQUIRED : (E = Essential; D = Desired)

• High School diploma, GED, or equivalent education plus five years' related experience; OR Associate's degree plus three years' related experience; OR Bachelor's degree plus two years' related experience; OR Master's degree in a related field plus one year's related experience. (E)
• Additional full time work experience may include :

Experience working in a human service setting; (E)

• Experience in a mental health setting, with emotionally disturbed and / or homeless individuals; (D)
• Appropriate volunteer and internship experience and personal experience in the mental health system. (D)
• Computer literacy, including Internet search and a basic proficiency level in Microsoft Office applications and Windows-based databases (E)
• Demonstrated ability to :

Work independently and in a small team environment; (E)

• Use second language skills for interpretation and translation verbally and in written form; (D) in some cases, bilingual ability in English and a targeted language may be required and will be noted as such on all postings; (E)
• Monitor and support developmental growth and the recovery process; (E)
• Manage multiple tasks and demands; (E)
• Employ tact and diplomacy, exercise good judgment, and act calmly in emergency situations; (E)
• Work from a strengths-based, harm-reduction, social rehabilitation model; (E)
• Work effectively with persons differing in value systems, ethnicity, cultural backgrounds, language capabilities and disabilities; (E)
• Work collaboratively with individuals identified as those with serious mental illness who meet the following criteria : histories of hospitalization, institutionalization, including with the criminal justice system, substance abuse, low engagement in medication treatment, and difficulty in participating in structured activities and living independently; (E)
• Work with populations identified as high risk and / or considered under-represented in the County Mental Health system with multiple barriers; (E)
• Successfully develop networks social, professional, and community help; (E)
• Exhibit exemplary customer service, compassion, and care in the execution of all duties and interactions. (E)
• Demonstrated ability to work with participants who :

May also have histories of assaultive behavior; (E)

• May have resided in long term care facilities for extended periods; (E)
• May have patterns of service that relied almost exclusively on emergency and institutional care; (E)
• May have cognitive difficulties and medical co-morbidities, are considered medically fragile; may also be developmentally disabled; (E)
• May have long-term patterns of homelessness and criminal justice involvement. (E)
• Knowledge of :

Clinical techniques for assessment, treatment, and rehabilitation of people with mental illness; problem resolution and conflict resolution techniques; (E)

• Community resources, including those required to meet the non-mental health needs of the target population; (E)
• Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) (D)
• Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) and Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP). (D)
• Special Requirements : Must be able to meet and receive a criminal records clearance, as required by Title XXII, other licensing regulations and Momentum practices. (E)
• A valid California Driver License, with access to a reliable vehicle or for driving a company vehicle, current proof of auto liability insurance, and a clean DMV record. (E)
• Physical requirements needed to perform the essential functions of this job, with or without accommodation :

Standing, walking, grasping, finger flexion, moving / lifting / carrying objects up to 40 lbs., bending, stooping, crouching, kneeling, withstanding repetitive motion, and reaching repeatedly are required constantly (over 2 / 3 of the workday); (E)

• Hearing and talking on telephone and in person is required occasionally (under 1 / 3 of workday); (E)
• Balancing, climbing and crawling may be required occasionally; (E)
• Physically able to assist clients and / or staff in the evacuation of program facilities in emergency situations. (E)

Equal Opportunity Employer

This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.