Substance Use Counselor: CASAC and/or LMSW

Compensation Range: $55,000 - $78,000 yearly commensurate with experience and
credentialling

Schedule: Wednesday-Sunday; 9:00AM-5:00PM

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

This is a grant funded position with our MOCJ (Mayors Office of Criminal
Justice) Hotels for the provision of therapeutic services to the formerly
incarcerated population in a transition housing setting.

Housing Works is seeking an experienced Substance Use Counselor (CASAC and/or
LMSW) to provide on-site, trauma-informed, and harm-reduction–oriented services
to justice-involved individuals transitioning from incarceration to the
community. The counselor will deliver integrated substance use and mental health
(dual diagnosis) treatment, with a strong focus on re-entry stabilization,
engagement, and continuity of care. This role involves conducting comprehensive
assessments of substance use, mental health symptoms, and re-entry–related risk
factors; providing individual and group counseling; supporting crisis
intervention; and collaborating closely with an interdisciplinary team of
medical, behavioral health, and re-entry service providers.

A central focus of this position is increasing clinical, behavioral, and
psychosocial stability in support of residents’ readiness to transition from
this transitional site to their next permanent or longer-term housing placement.
The counselor will play a critical role in supporting residents during high-risk
transition periods (e. g., recent release from incarceration, hospitalization,
detoxification), promoting safety, stability, and successful community
reintegration. 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

Responsibilities

* Clinical Services & Support:
* Provide individual counseling focused on substance use disorders and
co-occurring mental health conditions, utilizing evidence-informed,
trauma-responsive, and culturally responsive approaches.
* Facilitate psychoeducational and therapeutic groups addressing substance
use, mental health symptoms, relapse prevention, emotional regulation,
coping skills, and re-entry–related challenges (e. g., adjustment to
community living, supervision stressors, stigma).
* Conduct comprehensive bio-psychosocial and substance use assessments,
including evaluation of re-entry risks, legal involvement, and barriers to
care.
* Deliver crisis intervention services related to substance use, mental
health decompensation, trauma responses, or behavioral concerns; consult
with supervisors and complete required incident documentation.
* Integrated Dual Diagnosis Treatment:
* Develop and implement integrated treatment plans, in conjunction with the
Case Managers, that address both substance use and mental health needs in
collaboration with interdisciplinary providers.
* Support residents with co-occurring disorders through coordinated care and
conferencing with psychiatry, psychotherapy, primary care, and case
management.
* Utilize a harm reduction framework, meeting clients where they are and
supporting safer use, stabilization, and self-determined goals.
* Care Coordination & Systems Navigation:
* Coordinate referrals and linkages to detoxification, inpatient and
outpatient treatment, medication-assisted treatment (MAT), mental health
services, and recovery supports.
* Collaborate with internal and external partners, including re-entry
programs, medical providers, and behavioral health teams, to support
continuity of care.
* Participate in case conferences and interdisciplinary meetings,
particularly during periods of elevated risk (e. g., recent release from
incarceration, hospital discharge, relapse, psychiatric crisis).
* Documentation, Compliance & Team Participation:
* Maintain timely, accurate, and compliant clinical documentation in
accordance with HIPAA, MOCJ, and Housing Works standards.
* Participate in program meetings, supervision, trainings, and quality
assurance activities.
* Communicate proactively with team members to ensure resident safety,
engagement, and treatment continuity.
* All documentation and case notes are to be completed within 48 hours of
interaction.
* Other duties as assigned Other Functions:
* Attend weekly team meetings Partakes of one-hour weekly supervision and
maintain on-going clinical communication with supervisor.
* Participate in on-going training and/or certifications as per requirements.
* The LMSW will have access to PHI during the course of their work
activities. Incumbent will use this information to provide psychiatric
therapy as needed in compliance with all regulations and guidelines
relative to established plan of care. ALL HIPAA, corporate compliance, and
program guidelines must be maintained and kept at all times.
* Attendance of in-service trainings required.

Requirements

Required

* CASAC certification and/or LMSW required.
* LMSW must be from an accredited institution of higher learning with current
NYS licensure or possess a permit from the New York State Education
Department.
* Minimum of Associate’s degree from an accredited institution.
* At least one year of experience providing substance use counseling;
experience with co-occurring mental health disorders 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 in harm reduction, recovery-oriented, and trauma-informed care
settings.
* 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.
* Bi-lingual Spanish preferred

Job candidates should be aware that scammers may pose as employers and create
fake job postings in order to extract personal information from individuals for
financial gain. Housing Works will never ask job candidates for personal
information, such as social security numbers or bank account details, over the
phone. If you suspect that a job posting may be fake or wish to confirm that a
job posting from Housing Works is genuine, please contact us at
recruitment@housingworks.org

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