Social Worker/Social Worker, Senior - Behavioral Health

Full Job Description

The Behavioral Health area of Hennepin County's Health and Human Services is seeking a Social Worker or Senior Social Worker to work in Adult Behavioral Health Case Management on the Community Integration and Recovery Team (CIRT).

This position will provide services with a person-centered, harm-reduction based approach, and a culturally responsive lens.

Our goal is to take a respectful, inclusive approach to diversity, teamwork, and service with a strong emphasis on active listening, learning, and supportive communication recognizing the impact of bias, racial inequity, and disparities on assessment, systemic interactions, resources, and perspective.

Our interdisciplinary targeted case management team serves adults with complex psychiatric, and SUD, who have been referred through civil commitment.

We work closely with the person, their supports, treatment, other providers, team members, and community resources focusing on successful community living.

This position will support substance use disorder (SUD) related cases, provide limited targeted case management as a primary worker, and serve as a secondary worker on SUD-specific cases, which make up roughly 40-50% of the unit's workload.

Current Hennepin County employees who refer a candidate hired into an open competitive position may be eligible for a $500 referral bonus. For more information visit employee referral program.

Find us here at upcoming career fairs!

Salary will be based upon qualifications:

Social Worker $63,635.45 - $96,126.92 Annually

Senior Social Worker $70,171.58 - $105, 993.42 Annually

Location and hours:
This position is hybrid and will be performed both on-site at various locations in the community, and remote as job duties require. Works hours are Monday through Friday, between 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with flexibility. No weekend, overnight, or holiday shifts required. While this position is designated as hybrid, based on current requirements hires must reside in or relocate to Minnesota or Wisconsin.

New Employee Orientation (NEO) for all new benefit-earning employees is in-person in downtown Minneapolis. Details about NEO will be provided upon hire.


About this position type:
This is a full-time, benefit earning position.
This position is internally classified as a Social Worker or Social Worker, Senior.
Click here to view the job classification specification for Social Worker.
Click here to view the job classification specification for Social Worker, Senior.


In the Social Worker position, you will:

• Provide adult targeted case management services (assessment, planning, referral linkage, follow up and crisis intervention) to residents civilly committed due to mental illness and/or chemical dependency.
• Meet with residents in a variety of community settings to establish rapport, engage, and perform culturally responsive clinical assessments of strengths, needs, values, preferences, and available supports.
• Mutually identify goals and strategies, including accessing services, medication management, housing, SUD treatment, financial assistance, and other ongoing support needs to assist the resident served.
• Partner with hospitals, the County Attorney’s Office, and civil and criminal courts to support the best outcome and community services plan.
• Complete all necessary court paperwork and documentation in relation to a civil commitment case (including case noting and completion of progress reports, revocations of provisional discharge, vacating orders of commitment); as well as participating in civil commitment court hearings as needed.
• Provide consultation, collaboration, coordination, direction, and support as secondary assignment on all Chemical Dependency-only Civil Commitments along with any cases in which SUD concerns are indicated as primary and being addressed.
• Develop and maintain relationships with SUD providers in the community, make appropriate referrals to SUD treatment facilities, monitor macro-level legislative issues in the SUD community, and stay apprised of SUD-related community resources and providers.

In the Social Worker, Senior position, you will:

• Act as a team lead as needed, to ensure referrals are initiated and completed to the most appropriate services and supports.
• Provide adult targeted case management services (assessment, planning, referral linkage, follow up and crisis intervention) to residents civilly committed due to mental illness and/or chemical dependency.
• Meet with residents in a variety of community settings to establish rapport, engage, and perform culturally responsive clinical assessments of strengths, needs, values, preferences, and available supports.
• Mutually identify goals and strategies, including accessing services, medication management, housing, SUD treatment, financial assistance, and other ongoing support needs to assist the resident served.
• Partner with hospitals, the County Attorney’s Office, and civil and criminal courts to support the best outcome and community services plan.
• Complete all necessary court paperwork and documentation in relation to a civil commitment case (including case noting and completion of progress reports, revocations of provisional discharge, vacating orders of commitment); as well as participating in civil commitment court hearings as needed.
• Provide consultation, collaboration, coordination, direction, and support as secondary assignment on all Chemical Dependency-only Civil Commitments along with any cases in which SUD concerns are indicated as primary and being addressed.
• Develop and maintain relationships with SUD providers in the community, make appropriate referrals to SUD treatment facilities, monitor macro-level legislative issues in the SUD community, and stay apprised of SUD-related community resources and providers.

Need to have:

• For hire as a Social Worker:
  • One of the following:
    • Licensed as a Social Worker by the Minnesota Board of Social Work.
    • Bachelor's degree or higher in social work, psychology, sociology, human services, or equivalent field.
• For hire as a Senior Social Worker:
  • One of the following:
    • Licensed as a Graduate Social Worker by the Minnesota Board of Social Work.
    • Bachelor's degree in social work, psychology, sociology, or human services, and 18 semester (27 quarter) credits of graduate work in the above areas, and three years or more of full-time supervised experience as a social worker.
    • Master's degree or higher in social work or closely related field with course work emphasis in areas such as social work methods, human growth and behavior, and principles or social welfare.
• A valid driver's license and daily access to reliable transportation to travel primarily within the metro area to meet with persons in their residential setting and/or perform authorized off-site duties, and the ability to obtain a Hennepin County Driver's Permit to provide transportation as needed to essential services.

Nice to have:

• Licensed as an Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LADC) by the State of Minnesota.
• Experience:
  • Providing civil commitment case management.
  • Serving people with significant mental illness and SUD.
  • Working with various SUD treatment providers and understanding the different levels of treatment needs and intensity.
  • Reviewing and disseminating information based on clinical assessments to provide best care for SUD-related cases.
  • Working with medical assistance, waivers, and managed care.
  • Navigating dual-roles and expectations at the same time.
  • Working with interdisciplinary teams.

• Knowledge of:
  • Diversity of cultural and lifestyle experiences, beliefs, and practices relating to spiritual, mental, and physical health, community, family structure, and dynamics and disparities.
  • The 6 American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) dimensions and how to interpret those assessments.
  • Person-centered practice and how it applies to serving people on an involuntary basis.
  • SUD community resources and providers.

Candidates with fluency in another language(s) in addition to English are encouraged to apply. Bilingual candidates, especially in Hmong, Somali, or Spanish, who pass a language assessment may qualify for additional bilingual pay and duties.


About the department:
Human Services delivers a variety of services to individuals or families that assist with basic needs or encourage client change around specific objectives. We work with individuals as well as systems and communities in order to develop policy and advocate for the people we serve. The people we serve and our communities are connected. By helping one, we help the other.

About Hennepin County:
Hennepin is the largest county government organization in Minnesota. Our employees work every day to improve the health, safety and quality of life for our residents and communities. All of our jobs align with our mission to serve residents through transformative services that eliminate disparities, eliminate inequities, and create opportunity for all and our vision of a community where all people are healthy, all people are valued, and all people thrive.

Our employees receive a combination of competitive benefits and positive workplace culture not found at other organizations. This includes meaningful work that impacts our community, competitive pay, work-life balance, a variety of benefits and opportunities to grow. Learn more at The Bridge (login as Guest).

Hennepin County envisions an organization where our commitment to diversity and the elimination of disparities is fundamental in providing excellent service to our community.

Your future. Made here.

This posting may be used to fill current and future vacancies.

Watch this video for application best practices and tips.

This position may have access to systems or other documentation that contains HIPAA data.

Invitations to interview will be based upon an assessment of education and experience.

Final candidates may be required to complete a drug test that may include testing for cannabis and/or background check.

If you have any questions, please contact:
Taylor Dahlberg
taylor.dahlberg@hennepin.us

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