The Legal Aid Society’s Civil Practice has an opening for a Social Work Supervisor within the Elder Law Unit, Housing Practice. The Elder Law Unit is a city-wide unit with Housing teams in our Bronx and Brooklyn neighborhood offices featuring an interdisciplinary practice comprised of attorneys, social workers and paralegals.

The Legal Aid Society has a long history of providing eviction defense services to seniors in the Bronx and Brooklyn. In 2023, The Legal Aid Society created a city-wide Elder Law Unit (ELU), combining the Brooklyn Office for the Aging and the Bronx Assigned Counsel Project. By specializing in eviction defense for seniors the ELU recognizes that the preservation of housing for a senior often involves many intersecting medical, financial and social issues. The ELU seeks to assess and address the needs of our senior clients to not only prevent their eviction but to alleviate the underlying causes that lead them to be at risk of eviction.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

• Supervise the social work team in the Bronx and Brooklyn offices, Elder Practice-Housing
• Create and support new approaches to meeting staff and client needs
• Ensure accountability and maintenance of practice standards
• Provide in-service training and case consultation
• Conduct case reviews and performance evaluations
• Maintain a small caseload including crisis intervention, short-term counseling, and home visits
• Develop and implement procedures and policies
• Participate in supervisory and management meetings
• Represent the Practice at external meetings and conferences
• Advocate with city, state and federal agencies including HRA, APS, and SSA as well as community based advocacy
• Maintain case files and electronic records
• Other duties as assigned

Please submit these documents as a single combined PDF when you apply via the LAS (Legal Aid Society) Recruitment Portal.

• Resume
• Cover letter

• Candidates must have an MSW degree and New York State certification in social work, LMSW or LCSW
• 5 years of related experience
• Supervisory experience (may include supervision of staff and social work students)
• Experience in and/or commitment to advocacy on behalf of low-income people
• Strong assessment and client engagement skills
• Knowledge of government benefits and related advocacy desired
• Ability to work in and value a collaborative team model
• Demonstrated leadership ability
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and organizational skills
• Excellent writing, oral advocacy, case management, and computer skills
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment with timelines dictated by the court

SALARY TRANSPARENCY

The posting reflects the range of potential salaries for the role. The specific salary offers will be dependent on candidate qualifications, including collectively bargained salary steps for unionized roles.

Salary Range/ Salary: $104,465

SALARY AND BENEFITS

The leadership of The Legal Aid Society believes in attracting and retaining exceptional talent committed to serving our clients. We offer a generous benefits package including health insurance, paid vacation, disability, and life insurance, and more. Salaries for our unionized jobs are governed by our Collective Bargaining Agreement. Please visit our Careers page for additional information. Salary and benefits information will be available to applicants, when and if an offer is made.

Click here to read more about the benefits of working at The Legal Aid Society 

HIGHER EDUCATION AND LOAN FORGIVENESS

The Legal Aid Society is a qualified employer for the purposes of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness. This position allows an employee to take advantage of PSLF and other State and Federal loan forgiveness programs.

Additionally, employees who are New York residents may be eligible for assistance from New York state to assist with loan repayments, depending on years of practice. To learn more, click the links below.

studentaid.gov

hesc.ny.gov/loan-forgiveness-programs

OUR COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION

The leadership of The Legal Aid Society is committed to a work culture of zealous advocacy, respect, diversity and inclusion, client-oriented defense, access to justice and excellent representation. We are dedicated to building a strong professional relationship with each of our clients, to understanding their diverse circumstances, and to meeting their needs. Our ability to achieve these goals depends on the efforts of all of us.

WORK AUTHORIZATION

All applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States for any employer without sponsorship for a work visa or permit. We are currently unable to sponsor employment visas or permits. (However, for citizens of Canada and Mexico, LAS will provide a letter documenting employment status that is needed to obtain a TN visa.)

HOW TO APPLY

All applications must be completed online. We do not accept paper submissions. Please visit our Careers Page to review all current job postings, and instructions on the application process. For technical difficulties or questions regarding this posting, please email jo**************@le*******.org.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer, The Legal Aid Society prohibits discriminatory employment actions against and treatment of its employees and applicants for employment based on actual or perceived race or color, size (including bone structure, body size, height, shape, and weight), religion or creed, alienage or citizenship status, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity (one’s internal deeply-held sense of one’s gender which may be the same or different from one’s sex assigned at birth); gender expression (the representation of gender as expressed through, for example, one’s name, choice of pronouns, clothing, haircut, behavior, voice, or body characteristics; gender expression may not conform to traditional gender-based stereotypes assigned to specific gender identities), disability, marital status, relationship and family structure (including domestic partnerships, polyamorous families and individuals, chosen family, platonic co-parents, and multigenerational families), genetic information or predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, arrest or pre-employment conviction record, credit history, unemployment status, caregiver status, salary history, or any other characteristic protected by law.