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Advocates
Worcester, Massachusetts

Counselor- Recovery Services-Female Only

Counselor / TherapistIncludes weekendsFull-Time

Listed compensation

$21/hr

The week · per this posting · Tuesday – Saturday

Ask the employer about the work setting, call expectations, nights and shift pattern and time off.

Posted 1mo ago · Verified live

Job Description

  • Starting Rate: $21.00/hour
  • Schedule: Tuesday- Saturday 2pm - 10pm

The Counselor will provide a range of cognitive and motivational services to individuals referred to substance use residential services at Advocates, in order to promote successful reintegration into community living.

Advocates promotes a healthy work-life balance and offers many generous perks of employment and room for advancement. We are a strong-knit community that values the ideas and contributions of our staff.

Who We Are

At Advocates, we provide comprehensive services for people facing developmental, mental health, or other life challenges.

We’re a nonprofit, mission-driven organization with a person-centered approach, empowering the individuals we support to make choices, build independence, and live full, meaningful lives. Our work is rooted in respect, compassion, and inclusion, and we envision a world where individual differences are appreciated and celebrated.

At Advocates, we value the ideas, experiences, and contributions of employees and are committed to fostering a supportive, welcoming culture where everyone can grow and thrive.

  • Minimum Education Required
  • High School Diploma/GED

Shift: Second Shift

Responsibilities

Clinical services which may include treatment adherence monitoring, referrals to other services and levels of care (including detox, inpatient and residential care), health insurance application assistance, transportation, and communication with probation and the courts.

Manage risk for all assigned clients as clinically indicated in collaboration with treatment team recommendations.

  • Participation in Individual Service Plan development and coordination with all providers.
  • Facilitate weekly groups to help develop and apply recovery skills.
  • Provide discharge-planning coordination.

Attend and actively participate in all required meetings including Site Coordinating Committee meetings and Technical Assistance meetings.

Attend and actively participate in all training courses and activities as required, to include BSAS and treatment trainings.

Demonstrate a proactive commitment to maintaining effective communication with staff and those seeking services to facilitate and promote effective working relationships and superior customer service.

  • Provide linkages to on-going substance abuse, mental health & medical treatment as indicated.
  • Involve collaterals in treatment to include, referral sources and family members.

Complete all assigned documentation required per Advocates, Inc. protocol.

Attends and actively participates in supervision and staff meetings.

Qualifications

A minimum of a high school diploma or equivalent and a minimum of one year supervised counseling experience in substance use disorder treatment or a closely related field.

Proven ability to multitask and meet established deadlines. Outstanding customer service skills and attention to detail.

Strongly prefer that a candidate will have a demonstrated understanding of and competence in serving culturally diverse populations

Exceptional interpersonal skills to facilitate beneficial working relationships with internal and external sources.

Must have valid driver’s license and access to insured auto.

Advocates is committed to cultivating a diverse and welcoming community where everyone feels respected and valued. Advocates fosters a culture of inclusion that celebrates and promotes diversity along multiple dimensions, including race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, partnered status, age, national origin, socioeconomic status, religion, ability, culture, and experience.

We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all applicants. If you require a reasonable accommodation during the application, interview or hiring process, please contact Human Resources.

Key Skills

Crisis managementMultitaskingTime management

Substance Use Counseling — Counselor Career Context

In Massachusetts, the Counselor weighted monthly median benchmark on WeekdayDoc is ~$74k (396 salary observations; 1,587 listings), vs ~$73k nationally (10,111 salary observations; 46,259 listings). Monthly aggregates cover 2025-12-01 through 2026-11-01; these are not the modal's selected comparable-job medians.

The cost-of-living index for Massachusetts is 105.8 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)), so the posted ~$44k midpoint carries the purchasing power of roughly $41k in an average-cost state. 63.2% of Massachusetts clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

What does the Counselor market look like in Massachusetts?
MeasureThis jobMarket
Listed pay$44kCounselor median $50k (middle half $46k–$58k)13 comparable listings, Nov 2026
Massachusetts vs national$74k median in Massachusetts$73k nationally (+2%)396 state / 10,111 national salary observations
Cost-of-living adjusted pay~$41k in purchasing powerMassachusetts index 105.8 (US = 100)BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)
All counselor listings in Massachusetts534 active13,300 nationallylive on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026
Work settingon-sitepeers: 10% remote · 55% no call · 78% no weekends49 benchmarked listings
Sign-on & loan repaymentnot statedMassachusetts counselor listings (all specialties): 11% state a sign-on bonus (median $3k) · 16% offer loan repayment534 active listings, Nov 2026
Counselor pay trend (all specialties)−1.3% vs prior quarter—through Oct 2026
Advocates#9 of 12 for payTop Employers work-life index
Sources: WeekdayDoc live listing index, Top Employers work-life index, BEA Regional Price Parities (2024); as of Nov 2026. Same values as the Weekday Verdict and Market Insights on this page. Massachusetts figures use all counselors: too few Massachusetts Substance Use Counseling postings state pay.

Top Counselor Jobs

24 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution

24 jobs · 21 employers
6
<$65k
8
$65k-75k
5
$75k-85k
4
$85k-95k
1
$95k

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks

19 jobs
401k / retirement match
100%
Sign-on bonus
32%
CME allowance
26%
Loan repayment
16%
PSLF eligible
5%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

#1

Therapist (Associate or Licensed) - Co-Occurring Mental Health & Substance Use

Recover Medical Group · San Diego, California

$80k-$95k
#2

Therapist, Substance Abuse Counselor, Behavioral Health

Lifepoint Health · Holyoke, Massachusetts

$69k-$93k
#3

Substance Use Counselor

$60k-$90k
#4

Substance Use Disorder Counselor

$68k-$90k
+ 22 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

median 3.5this job 3.0
Below most Substance Use Counseling listings for work-life

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 44 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

  • Includes weekends
Advocates logo

About Advocates

Non-profit Organizations
Framingham, MA
1,001-5,000 employees

Benefits & Perks

Healthy work-life balance
Generous perks of employment
Room for advancement

Living in Worcester

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$447k
Typical market rent
$2,122/mo
Residents’ average commute
24 min
State income tax
Up to 5%
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Sep 2026), Zillow market rents (Sep 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.