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Job Specification

 SOCIAL WORKER

 DEFINITION

 Under direct supervision of a Social Work Supervisor in a county
 welfare agency, performs office and field  work required in
 providing continuing preventive and rehabilitative social
 services to clients and their families; does other related duties
 as required.

 NOTE: The examples of work for this title are for illustrative
 purposes only.  A particular position using this title may not
 perform all duties listed in this job specification. Conversely, all
 duties performed on the job may not be listed.

 NOTE: Appointments may be made to positions requiring bilingual skills.

 03735 - Bilingual in Spanish and English
 SPECIAL SKILL
 Applicants must be able to read, write, speak, understand, or communicate 
 in Spanish and English sufficiently to perform the duties of this position.

 EXAMPLES OF WORK:

 Meets with clients at the office and/or clients' homes, asks
 questions regarding their social, economic, and emotional
 situation, records their responses, and when possible observes
 their home environment and family interactions to gain
 understanding of their problems to determine factors contributing
 to these problems and steps that can be taken to alleviate them
 and/or to determine their eligibility for social services.

 When specialized or long-term services are required, may refer
 client to other service units such as housing, family planning,
 and so forth to meet client's specific needs adequately.

 Based on assessment of client's problems, formulates a service
 plan with the client which specifies long and short term goals
 and methods and resources to be utilized to achieve these goals
 to ensure that the best possible course of action will be
 followed to meet client's needs.

 Refers clients to appropriate service providers for medical care
 and treatment, drug or alcohol rehabilitation, housing,
 employment, training, counseling, and so forth.

 Coordinates services for the client by arranging for inservice
 delivery with other agencies, internal units, or other members of
 the social service staff.

 Discusses clients' problems with them and provides advice and
 information regarding family planning, budgeting, parenting
 skills, personal problems, and so forth.

 Makes followup contacts with clients and/or service providers on
 an ongoing basis to discuss client's progress and to determine
 whether original goals of the casework plan are being met; if
 necessary, revises the service plan to accommodate new or
 changing needs.

 Visits boarding homes or other care facilities at least
 semiannually to determine if clients are receiving quality care
 and to provide information and referral services to all residents
 of boarding homes, rooming houses, and licensed residential
 health care facilities.

 Acts as client's advocate in such ways as securing emergency
 payments when electrical or other services are discontinued, when
 checks are lost or stolen, or when eviction is eminent and/or by
 providing protective services to ensure their well-being.

 Appears in court or at a hearing to testify regarding a
 particular case or to act as an expert witness regarding welfare
 regulations.

 Prepares narrative reports, board requests, or requests for
 service payments, and completes forms which document the entire
 casework process with each client including the client's
 problems, service plan, progress, and unusual occurrences as
 mandated.

 In compliance with the Rooming and Boarding House Act of 1979,
 investigates all complaints of abuse, neglect, exploitation, or
 threats of same to ensure protection and safety of clients.

 Through reading social work literature, contacting other
 agencies, and attending seminars and inservice training sessions,
 obtains information to continually update resources and gain new
 knowledge relating to the social work field.

 Will be required to learn to utilize various types of electronic
 and/or manual recording and information systems used by the
 agency, office, or related units.

 REQUIREMENTS:

 EDUCATION:

 Graduation from an accredited college or university with a
 Bachelor's degree.

 NOTE: Applicants who do not meet the above education
 requirement may substitute experience in social work having
 responsibility for gathering social information from clients,
 determining their needs, and planning and carrying out  treatment
 plans and/or service plans geared to the needs of individual 
 clients on a year-for-year basis with thirty (30) semester hour 
 credits being equal to one (1) year of experience.

 LICENSE:

 Appointees will be required to possess a driver's license
 valid in New Jersey only if the operation of a vehicle, rather
 than employee mobility, is necessary to perform essential duties
 of the position.

 KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES:

 Knowledge of principles and techniques of conducting interviews
 and acquiring information from clients who are in need of social
 services.

 Knowledge of problems associated with the economically
 disadvantaged and culturally different, ill and disabled
 individuals, juvenile delinquents, the elderly, and drug/alcohol
 abusers.

 Knowledge of principles and techniques of counseling clients
 regarding personal, economic, emotional, and social problems.

 Knowledge of functions of available community resources including
 social security, vocational rehabilitation, mental health,
 homemaker services, visiting nurses, and so forth.

 Knowledge of principles and techniques of maintaining effective
 interpersonal relations including techniques of handling various
 types of client-worker interaction and developing liaisons with
 other agencies.

 Knowledge of principles and techniques of preparing narrative
 reports.

 Knowledge of techniques of effective written expression including
 grammar, word usage, and conciseness.

 Knowledge of techniques of conducting investigations regarding
 abuse.

 Ability to differentiate between objective fact and subjective
 interpretation of the client.

 Ability to obtain social data on applicants for assistance.

 Ability to understand and accept the family centered focus in
 working with clients.

 Ability to analyze and evaluate case records including
 preparation of summaries for other agencies and professional
 consultants.

 Ability to establish and maintain relationships within and
 outside the agency in a professional manner.

 Ability to organize own time in an effort to meet assigned
 situations and work demands.

 Ability to maintain essential records and files and complete
 standard forms for documentation.

 Ability to apply principles and practices of social work.

 Ability to interpret rules and regulations applicable to the
 county welfare agency.

 Ability to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual
 recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or
 related units.

 Ability to read, write, speak, understand, and communicate in
 English sufficiently to perform the duties of this position.
 American Sign Language or Braille may also be considered as
 acceptable forms of communication.

 Persons with mental or physical disabilities are eligible as
 long as they can perform the essential functions of the job after
 reasonable accommodation is made to their known limitations.  If
 the accommodation cannot be made because it would cause the
 employer undue hardship, such persons may not be eligible.

This job specification is applicable to the following title code(s) which
are different work week or work month and/or variants of the job class title:
Job
Spec
Code
VariantState,
Local or
Common
Class of
Service
Work
Week
State
Class
Code
Local
Class
Code
Salary
Range
Note
03734LC N/A21-
03735Bilingual In Spanish And EnglishLC N/A21-

This job specification is for local government use only.
Salary range is only applicable to state government.
Local salaries are established by individual local jurisdictions.

10/14/2006