Child Welfare Worker I

READ THIS ENTIRE BULLETIN FOR INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO REAPPLY FOR THIS RECRUITMENT.

THIS IS A REOPENING OF AN EXISTING EXAMINATION. If you have previously applied or started an application for the Child Welfare Worker I, Exam 25-6740-01, read this entire bulletin. There are specific instructions on how to reapply for this position.

PLEASE CONTACT THE EXAMINATION ANALYST, Ione Bell AT IONE.BELL@ACGOV.ORG TO HAVE YOUR PREVIOUS APPLICATION RELEASED BACK TO YOU.

The scores and dispositions of candidates for this examination will be merged with previous exam participants. If you have previously submitted an application and choose to reapply, your new score/disposition will replace your current disposition.

Applications and supplemental questionnaires will only be accepted on-line.

The Alameda County Social Services Agency (SSA) is comprised of almost 2,400 men and women working collectively and in partnership with community-based organizations, neighborhood groups and policy makers to serve the needs of the community. SSA provides services through its administration and operating departments. Administration includes Finance, Government and Community Relations, and Human Resources.  SSA’s operations includes Adult and Aging Services, Children and Family Services, and Workforce and Benefits Administration. 

The Social Services Agency assists one out of four of Alameda County's residents. The mission of the Social Services Agency is to promote the economic and social well-being of individuals, families, neighborhoods, and communities. 

To learn more about the Alameda County Social Services Agency, please visit the website at  https://www.alamedasocialservices.org/.

THE POSITION

The Child Welfare Worker I is an entry-level classification. Under close supervision, the Child Welfare Worker I provides intensive assessment, case management and/or casework services toward providing the most stable home environment for children who have been or are in danger of being abused, neglected or abandoned, and may be assigned other duties. Child Welfare Worker I’s are expected to gain experience and demonstrate proficiency which qualifies them to promote to Child Welfare Worker II upon completion of one (1) year full-time service.  The Child Welfare Worker I job assignment will not be extended beyond one (1) year.

Child Welfare Worker I positions are located in the Social Services Agency, in the Department of Children and Family Services.

THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

The ideal candidates for the position of Child Welfare Worker must possess knowledge of the laws and principles related to child welfare. They must possess a broad knowledge and understanding of normal child development and how trauma impacts the developmental process. The successful candidates will have the skill and ability to conduct client interviews, assessment and crisis intervention activities. They will understand normal family functioning and how this functioning is impacted by trauma and loss. Incumbents in the position will exercise sound judgment in making diagnostic risk assessments and decisions regarding placement of children and handle high-pressure, crisis situations professionally and be able to extract appropriate information during such situations. They must be able to work with a variety of individuals with varying degrees of mental health functioning, literacy, coping abilities and life skills. They must have the ability to understand the role of the Agency in the treatment plan and the Social Services Agency's policies, procedures, programs and services and be able to articulate this understanding to their clients.

In addition, the ideal candidate must possess the following: 

● The ability to learn and adeptly apply principles regarding child welfare,

●  knowledge of community resources,

●  the ability to set limits to assist clients in taking steps toward greater self-sufficiency,

●  the ability to write clear, concise and descriptive reports under time restraints,

●  strong written and verbal communication skills,

●  the ability to work well under pressure and display sound time management techniques,

●  an appreciation for diversity.

EITHER I  

Education:  

Possession of a master’s degree from an accredited college or university in Counseling, or Clinical Psychology, Sociology, Education or an equivalent field (Vocational Rehabilitation majors not acceptable).

OR II  

Education:  

Possession of a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university (180 quarter units or 120 semester units) with major coursework in psychology, sociology, social work, child development or an equivalent field (Vocational Rehabilitation majors not acceptable).  

AND

Experience:  

The equivalent of two (2) years of full-time post baccalaureate experience which involved the provision of direct services to families or children in one of the following or closely related areas:  child welfare, family counseling, juvenile probation, pediatric social work, alcohol and drug counseling, school social work, and school counseling.

The most suitably qualified candidates will possess the following competencies: .

Knowledge of:

• Principles of sociology and psychology relating to normal and abnormal human behavior and family and community dynamics.
• Child development and parenting skills.
• Interviewing techniques, including crisis intervention and counseling methods.
• The role of the Agency in the treatment plan and the Social Services Agency's policies, procedures, programs and services.
• Community resources.
• Legal definitions of sexual molestation, physical abuse, general neglect, incest, failure to thrive, emotional abuse, medical neglect and other details of laws relating to child abuse reporting and other related areas of law.  

Ability to:

• Work cooperatively with varying interests and coordinate them towards achieving case plan and solving problems.
• Set limits to assist clients in taking steps toward greater self-sufficiency.
• Write clear, concise and descriptive reports under time restraints.
• Exercise sound judgment in making diagnostic risk assessments and decisions regarding placement of children.
• Deal effectively with hostile, disorganized or aggressive clients.
• supervision and consultation.
• Handle high-pressure, crisis situations professionally and extract appropriate information in such situations.
• Learn and use various computer applications such as word processing and databases.

THE EXAMINATION WILL CONSIST OF THE FOLLOWING STEPS:

1) A review of applicants' applications to verify possession of minimum requirements. Those candidates who possess the minimum requirements for the class will move on to the next step in the examination process.

2) Oral Panel Interview Examination (Weighted as 100% of the final examination score): If the candidates meet the minimum qualifications, then the candidate will be invited to participate in an oral panel interview where they will be asked about past job experiences relating to the core competencies that successful incumbents of the job possess. The candidate who passes this portion of the exam will then be scored and put into rank order. The oral panel interview examination may also serve as the hiring interview at the discretion of the hiring authority. 

CANDIDATES MUST ATTAIN A QUALIFYING RATING ON EACH PORTION OF THIS EXAMINATION.

We reserve the right to make changes to the announced examination components. 

Alameda County utilizes a Civil Service Selection System founded on merit. Such a system is competitive and based on broad recruitment efforts and equal opportunity for qualified applicants to test in an examination process designed to determine the qualifications, fitness and ability of competitors to perform duties of the vacant position. Many of our recruitments are targeted and specific to the needs of a current vacant position, in which case, the eligible list may be exclusively used for that current vacant position. Other recruitments may be more broadly used for both current and future vacancies, or for other alternate jobs with comparable scopes of work.

To learn more about our recruitment and selection process, please visit the “What You Need to Know” section of our website, https://hrs.alamedacountyca.gov.

1. Applicants will be informed via email with reasonable notice in advance of any examination process which will require their attendance. The following dates are tentative and subject to change based on the needs of the Agency.

WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE CHANGES TO THE ANNOUNCED RECRUITMENT & SELECTION PLAN

*The combined oral examination/hiring interview, in addition to establishing an eligibility list, may serve as the final selection interview for vacancies in this classification. 

Continuous:  All applications must be completed according to the instructions.  Incomplete applications, and resumes in lieu of properly completed applications, will not be considered. Applications and supplemental questionnaires will only be accepted electronically, via the County's online application system by 5:00pm on the deadline for filing.  Please note that completing an application template is not the same as submitting an application for this position.  To apply for the position, select the "Click Here to Apply" link on the announcement.

Veterans’ Preference

Each applicant entitled to veterans’ preference as provided in the Alameda County Civil Service Rules who has served in the armed forces of the United States during a war or campaign as defined by Section 1897 of the Government Code of the State of California and who has been discharged or released under honorable conditions and wishes to claim such preference shall do so by presenting proof of his/her honorable discharge (DD214) from the armed forces of the United States, showing the dates of his/her military service. Each applicant entitled to Disabled Veterans’ points as provided in the Alameda County Civil Service Rules, who wishes to claim such preference shall additionally present proof of military-connected disability from the United States Veterans Administration.

U.S. military veterans (including applicants already employed by the County of Alameda) intending to claim preferential consideration pursuant to Alameda County Civil Service Rules must present proof of honorable discharge or release (DD Form 214) concurrent with this application but in no event later than the final step in the recruitment process (usually the oral interview.)

To claim veteran’s preference, proof must be presented during check in on the date of the applicant’s scheduled oral interview. Failure to submit proof by this date will forfeit the applicant's claim to veterans' preference in such examination.

Alameda County and the Human Resource Services Department will make reasonable efforts in the examination and/or selection process to accommodate qualified individuals with disabilities and/or medical conditions in accordance/compliance with the State Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), Federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Alameda County’s Reasonable Accommodation Policy and applicable statutes. To request an accommodation due to a disability/medical condition during this or other phases of the examination/selection process, please contact the assigned Human Resources Representative listed on the job announcement before the last date of filing. Alameda County requires applicants to provide supporting documentation to substantiate a request for reasonable accommodation. In order to qualify for a reasonable accommodation, applicants must have a disability/medical condition pursuant to the ADA, FEHA and applicable statutes. 

For more information regarding our Reasonable Accommodation procedures, please visit our website: hrs.alamedacountyca.gov.

The County offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits package that affords wide-ranging health care options to meet the different needs of a diverse workforce and their families. We also sponsor many employee discount, fitness and health screening programs focused on overall wellbeing.  These benefits include but are not limited to*:

For your Health & Well-Being

• Medical – HMO & PPO Plans
• Dental – HMO & PPO Plans
• Vision or Vision Reimbursement
• Share the Savings
• Basic Life Insurance
• Supplemental Life Insurance (with optional dependent coverage for eligible employees)
• Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance
• County Allowance Credit
• Flexible Spending Accounts - Health FSA, Dependent Care and Adoption Assistance
• Short-Term Disability Insurance
• Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Voluntary Benefits - Accident Insurance, Critical Illness, Long-Term Care, Hospital Indemnity and Legal Services
• Employee Assistance Program

For your Financial Future

• Retirement Plan - (Defined Benefit Pension Plan)
• Deferred Compensation Plan (457 Plan or Roth Plan)

For your Work/Life Balance

• 12 paid holidays
• Floating Holidays
• Vacation and sick leave accrual
• Vacation purchase program
• Catastrophic Sick Leave
• Pet Insurance
• Commuter Benefits Program
• Guaranteed Ride Home
• Employee Wellness Program (e.g. At Work Fitness, Incentive Based Programs, Gym Membership Discounts)
• Employee Discount Program (e.g. theme parks, cell phone, etc.)
• Child Care Resources
• 1st United Services Credit Union

*Eligibility is determined by Alameda County and offerings may vary by collective bargaining agreement.  This provides a summary of the benefits offered and can be subject to change.

All notices related to County recruitments for which you have applied will be sent/delivered via email. Please add @jobaps.com, @acgov.org, Noreplyalamedacountyhr@acgov.org and Noreply@jobaps.com as accepted addresses to any email blocking or spam filtering program you may use. If you do not do this, your email blocking or spam filtering program may block receipt of the notices regarding your application for recruitments. You are also strongly advised to regularly log into your County of Alameda online application account to check for notices that may have been sent to you. All email notices that will be sent to you will also be kept in your personal online application account. You will be able to view all of your notices in your online application account by clicking on the "My applications" button on the Current Job Openings page.

Please take the steps recommended above to ensure you do not miss any notices about a recruitment for which you have applied. The County of Alameda is not responsible for notices that are not read, received or accessed by any applicant for a County recruitment.

NOTE: All notices are generated through an automated email notification system. Replies to the email boxes Noreply@jobaps.com and noreplyalamedacountyhr@acgov.org are routed to unmonitored mailboxes. If you have questions, please go to our website at www.acgov.org/hrs. You may also contact the Human Resources Analyst listed on the job announcement for the recruitment for which you have applied.

Ione Bell | Human Resources Analyst

Human Resource Services, County of Alameda

(510) 272-6456 | Ione.bell@acgov.org

www.acgov.org/hrs

DISASTER SERVICE WORKER

All Alameda County employees are designated Disaster Service Workers through state and local law.  Employment with the County requires the affirmation of a loyalty oath to this effect. Employees are required to report to work as ordered in the event of an emergency.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

Alameda County has a diverse workforce, that is representative of the communities we serve and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All aspects of employment are based on merit, competence, performance and business need. Alameda County does not discriminate in employment on the basis of, race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors protected under federal, state and local law. Alameda County celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive, and welcoming workplace environment.