Social Worker

Housing Works; New York (NY); On-site; USD 65,000 - 78,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare plans

PTO up to 30 days

Educational benefit

Job summary

Housing Works in New York City seeks a Social Worker to provide short-term, trauma‑informed mental health therapy for individuals re‑entering the community after incarceration, supporting stability during a critical transition.

You will work on a 365‑day, on‑site interdisciplinary team to deliver time‑limited treatment, crisis support, and linkage to housing, healthcare, and ongoing community‑based care.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in social work from an accredited program.
• LMSW issued by New York State or limited permit eligible.
• At least one year of experience providing mental health counseling, co-occurring substance use preferred.
• Experience with justice-involved populations or re-entry housing is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provide individual supportive psychotherapy to residents with mental health needs related to re-entry stress and trauma.
• Facilitate short-term therapeutic groups focusing on emotional regulation and coping skills.
• Conduct psychosocial assessments to identify needs and barriers to stabilization.
• Develop time-limited treatment goals for safety and housing transitions.
• Provide crisis intervention and clinical support after incidents.
• Collaborate with psychiatry and primary care for complex cases.
• Participate in interdisciplinary care conferences and care transitions.

Skills

Bilingual Spanish

Mental health counseling

Communication

Education

Master’s Degree in Social Work

LMSW or limited NYS permit

Job description

Compensation Range: $65,000 - $78,000 yearly commensurate with experience and credentials

Schedule: Monday-Friday; 11:00AM-7:00PM

Benefits:
We have three comprehensive healthcare plans to choose from based on your priorities and budget. Housing Works covers most of the plan; you pay a portion, based on your salary. Staff begins accruing PTO immediately for a total of up to 30 days earned in the first year. We offer employees an educational benefit. This money is available for tuition loan reimbursement, tuition costs, and text books.

Overview: The Social Work - MOCJ Transitional Housing position provides short-term, supportive mental health therapy to individuals recently released from incarceration residing in Emergency Transitional Housing. The primary clinical focus of this role is to increase emotional, behavioral, and psychosocial stability during a critical re‑entry period, in order to support residents’ successful transition to their next housing placement and engagement in ongoing community-based care. Housing Works operates from a harm reduction, trauma‑informed, and recovery‑oriented framework, recognizing the complex impacts of incarceration, community re‑entry, poverty, racism, and unmet health needs.

Within the MOCJ ETH model, the Social Worker functions as part of an on‑site interdisciplinary team (medical, psychiatry, substance use, and re‑entry supports) providing integrated services to residents with high‑acuity mental health, substance use, and medical needs. The Social Worker delivers time‑limited therapeutic interventions focused on stabilization, engagement, symptom management, coping skill development, and readiness for transition from the ETH setting to longer‑term housing and treatment supports. This position requires flexibility, comfort working in a fast‑paced transitional setting, and experience supporting justice‑involved individuals during periods of heightened vulnerability. The facility operates 365 days on a 24‑hour basis daily, including evening and weekend hours, work on holidays (some positions will require non‑traditional work hours).

• Provide individual supportive psychotherapy to residents with mental health needs related to re‑entry stress, trauma, mood disorders, anxiety, and co‑occurring substance use.
• Facilitate short‑term therapeutic and psychoeducational groups focused on emotional regulation, coping skills, stress management, community adjustment, and housing transition readiness.
• Conduct initial psychosocial assessments to identify clinical needs, re‑entry stressors, strengths, and barriers to stabilization.
• Collaboratively develop focused, time‑limited treatment goals that support safety, engagement, and readiness for transition to the next level of housing and care.
• Provide crisis intervention and clinical support following behavioral health incidents, decompensation, or significant stressors.
• Conduct outreach to residents within 24 hours of significant incidents to support stabilization and reduce risk of escalation.
• Collaborate with psychiatry, primary care, and leadership on higher‑risk or clinically complex cases.
• Integrated Care & Team Collaboration:
  • Actively participate in interdisciplinary case conferences to coordinate care and support treatment planning.
  • Communicate effectively with internal providers and external collaterals to support continuity of care and appropriate referrals.
  • Promote diagnostic consultation between primary care providers and consulting psychiatry when residents are not improving or present with diagnostic complexity.
• Documentation & Compliance:
  • Complete timely, accurate, and clinically substantive documentation, including progress notes aligned with diagnosis, treatment goals, and scope of practice.
  • Ensure all documentation is completed within 24-48 hours of client contact.
  • Maintain strict adherence to HIPAA, MOCJ, and Housing Works compliance standards.
• Other duties as assigned Other Functions:
  • Attend weekly interdisciplinary team meetings.
  • Participate in weekly individual clinical supervision and maintain ongoing communication with supervisor.
  • Engage in required trainings, certifications, and professional development activities.
  • Perform other duties as assigned to support program operations and quality of care

Requirements:

Required:

• Master’s Degree in Social Work from an accredited institution.
• LMSW issued by New York State or limited permit eligible.
• At least one year of experience providing mental health counseling; experience with co‑occurring substance use disorders is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience working with justice‑involved populations, individuals re‑entering the community after incarceration, or populations with complex psychosocial needs.

Preferred:

• Two or more years of experience providing services to individuals with substance use disorders, serious mental illness, and/or HIV/AIDS Experience working with justice‑involved populations, individuals recently released from incarceration, or residents in transitional or supportive housing.
• Experience providing short‑term, stabilization‑focused therapy.
• Familiarity with harm reduction, trauma‑informed care, and co‑occurring mental health and substance use disorders.
• Customer service abilities including effective listening skills.
• Critical thinking skills, decisive judgment, and the ability to work with minimal supervision in a fast‑paced environment.
• Bilingual Spanish preferred.

Housing Works was founded in 1990; With a long‑term commitment to AIDS advocacy. Housing Works established New York State’s first harm‑reduction‑based, OASAS‑licensed outpatient drug treatment program. Other services include Health Home care management, behavioral health, and syringe exchange programs. A pioneer in the social entrepreneurship movement, Housing Works operates 10 high‑end thrift shops in Manhattan and Brooklyn and a much‑loved Bookstore Cafe in Soho. For more information, visit www.housingworks.org

Housing Works fights for funding and legislation to ensure that all people living with HIV/AIDS have access to quality housing, healthcare, HIV prevention, and treatment, among other lifesaving services.

Housing Works provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements. Housing Works complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. Housing Works also does not request prior salary information during the hiring process. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

This position is included in a bargaining unit of Housing Works' New York City employees represented by a labor union known as the Retail Wholesale and Department Store Union ("RWDSU"). Accordingly, the RWDSU has the exclusive right to bargain over the terms and conditions of employment related to this position and this position may become covered by the terms of a collective bargaining agreement (a "CBA") between Housing Works and the RWDSU.

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.