Social Worker III

Job Description:

Social Worker III

Description

Position Description

Final Filing Date: August 22, 2025

Exam # 25/60C22/07MN

SUMMARY OF POSITION

Join a dedicated team of multi-disciplinary mental health professionals. The Behavioral Health Bureau is seeking Social Worker IIIs (SWIIIs) to provide supportive services to Monterey County clients by working with people that have mental illness and/or substance use related issues.

The Behavioral Health Bureau is a progressive agency that serves children, youth, adults, older adults and their families with System of Care values of being community based, culturally relevant, client and family centered and using clinical evidence-based practices to support clients in the wellness and recovery of their mental illness and substance use. We are currently recruiting to fill multiple positions within our Access to Treatment, Adult, Crisis, Justice Involved, Child & Adolescent Systems of Care.

Access to Treatment clinics are entry points into services and the SWIII will work with individuals of all ages who are seeking to get connected to services for mental health and substance use issues that are impacting their ability to function in work, school, home, social and community settings. The SWIII will work within a multidisciplinary team of clinicians, psychiatric staff, and other support staff. The SWIII conducts screenings, provides case management services and supports with referrals and linkage to adjunctive services and/or programs.

Adult System of Care (ASOC) programs provide a wide range of clinical, case management and care coordination services to adults (18+ years of age) with serious mental illness and co-occurring conditions. These programs are oriented towards a strength-based, wellness, whole person care approach that facilitates each person’s progress towards their own individualized recovery goals. The SWIIIs are part of a multi-disciplinary team and work closely with psychiatrists, clinic nurses, medical assistants, clinicians, behavioral health aides. Additionally, there are a rich set of community providers that work closely with teams to provide a variety of services including but not limited to supported employment and education, dual recovery, crisis residential, day treatment, peer support and supported housing.

Adult System of Care (ASOC) Adult Placement Team works with LPS conserved clients with serious mental illness and co-occurring substance use conditions who are in a variety of placement settings both in and out of county. SWIII works on a multi-disciplinary team and closely with the Senior Psychiatric Social Workers as well as the Public Guardian/Conservator’s Office. The team travels weekly to see clients at their placements within and outside of the county, and coordinates transitions between levels of care as needed.

Adult Justice Involved Services Team works with justice involved adults (18+ years of age) some of whom are reentering society after a period of incarceration (jail/prison) and transitioning to community-based services to meet their mental health and substance use treatment needs. Clients may be participating in one of the Collaborative Court or Diversion programs, CARE Act (Care Court) or referred to services through Post Release Community Supervision or the Cal AIM Justice Involved Behavioral Health Linkages Initiative. The SWIIIs work as part of a multidisciplinary team approach and provide support, information, resources, screenings, referrals, and direct services to individuals with the goal of connecting them to needed care, stabilizing in the community, and reducing recidivism rates.

Community Crisis Services (Mobile Crisis) Team responds to calls for crisis support and provides brief crisis intervention, de-escalation, triage, risk / safety assessment, safety planning, referral and linkage to individuals and families experiencing behavioral health crisis in the community. This team seeks to provide support to stabilize the situation in the community to avoid unnecessary hospitalizations and divert from emergency resources (hospital/jail) when appropriate while providing linkage to ongoing care as needed. The team also receives and responds to non-urgent referrals in the community, providing outreach and engagement services.

Child and Adolescent System of Care (CSOC) provides an array of clinical services from of birth to 25 years of age and their families. Clinical teams include Early Childhood Services, Transition Age Youth (TAY), Post Hospitalization Support, as well clinical teams that partner with the Child Welfare, Education and Juvenile Probation systems.

The Eligible List established by this recruitment process will be used to fill current and future vacancies, both regular and temporary, as they arise.

This classification is part of a flexible series. Incumbents appointed at the lower level of the career series may be promoted up to the higher level of the career series subject to their meeting the employment standards for the higher class and a recommendation for their promotion by the appointing authority in accordance with the Flexible Staffing Program and Guidelines.

Examples of Duties

• Carries a caseload as a support staff working alongside Psychiatric Social Workers. Sometimes cases may be complex assisting people with multiple emotional, mental, social and physical issues.
• Provides psychosocial education and rehabilitation in groups and/or 1:1.
• Assists clients with linkages (which can include referrals and transportation) to support client’s ability to access needed services and community resources for things like housing, socialization, medical and mental health needs, education, vocational and/or other support services. May assist with transportation to ensure linkage to essential Behavioral Health and other supportive services.
• Makes home visits and performs work in the office and community in connection with casework assignments.
• Prepares and maintains documentation in the Electronic Health Record; communicates decisions, timelines, recommendations and case plans to clients and families that is in coordination with team and in congruence with treatment goals/objectives.
• Responds to situations as part of a team approach to clients in crisis, such as being involved in WIC 5150 situations which include welfare checks, providing support and gathering collateral information and collaborating with others to get client to the hospital.
• Interface with multi-disciplinary team, including Psychiatric Social Workers, Medical Doctors, medical support staff, Public Guardian/Conservators, Department of Social Services, Probation, etc. to help formulate diagnosis, treatment plans and intervention strategies.
• Participates in in-service training and other staff development activities to increase knowledge of social work processes and achieve technical competence.

To view the complete job description, please visit the Monterey County website: Social Worker III

THE SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATE

Will have a proven track record demonstrating the following knowledge, skills and abilities:

Thorough Knowledge of:

• Principles and practices of organization, workload management and time management.
• Principles and practices of note taking, report writing, and English composition, grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
• Phone etiquette, customer service, communication and interview techniques.
• Basic principles of individual and group behavior.
• Basic public welfare programs on the Federal, State, and local level.
• General principles of public assistance policies and programs.
• Strategies and protocols surrounding crisis intervention techniques such as voice modulation and assessing the potential for suicide.
• Psychopathology, the different types of mental illness diagnoses, how mental illness affects human behavior and mental health services and treatments utilized by clients.
• Signs, stages and dynamics of abuse, and the effects of abuse on child/adult development and behavior.
• Signs and symptoms of alcohol and drug use/abuse in adults and children and the effects on families.

Skill and Ability to:

• Communicate effectively with others in writing, in person and over the telephone.
• Analyze data, interpret directions, procedures and regulations, and develop appropriate responses.
• Perform job duties under stressful conditions.
• Respond appropriately to situations.
• Maintain confidential information in accordance with legal standards and/or county regulations.
• Understand and apply the agency program, policy and procedures.
• Obtain facts and recognize the relevance and significance.
• Organize and maintain work detail.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationship with agency staff, clients, and outside organizations.
• Analyze situation and adopt effective courses of action.
• Recognize signs of abuse for children, elderly and dependent adults; assess risk factors and potential dangers to clients.
• Develop skill in interviewing case, recording, and interpretation.
• Work within a community setting and effectively use appropriate resources and services.
• Maintain confidentiality in accordance with legal standards and/or county regulations.
• Communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
• Operate a personal computer and other office equipment and related software.
• Act appropriately in emergency and stressful situations.
• Interact professionally and respectfully with clients including difficult, hostile, or distressed clients.
• Respect cultural differences.
• Work with difficult or complex cases/clients including clients with dual diagnoses, potentially dangerous clients or legally complex cases.
• Analyze data from multiple sources, interpret and apply complex directions, rules, policies, procedures and regulations, and develop appropriate responses.

Desirable Qualifications:

• Ability to speak, read and write in English and Spanish
  

Characteristics of the Ideal Candidate:

• Exceptional customer service
  
• Compassionate, empathetic, and culturally sensitive
  
• Communicate effectively and professionally orally and in writing
  
• Self-motivated and able to perform assignments independently
  
• Ability to work effectively on a multi-disciplinary team
  
• Strong collaborative skills
  
• Exceptional inter-personal skills
  
• Multi-task oriented
  
• Flexible
  

Examples of Experience/Education/Training

The skills necessary may be acquired through various types of education, training, and/or experience, typically:

EITHER

Pattern 1: One (1) year of full-time experience performing journey level social work case management comparable to the Social Worker II classification in an Interagency Merit System (IMS) County;

OR

Pattern 2: Two (2) years of full-time social work case management experience* in a public or private agency and thirty (30) college semester units (45 quarter units) from an accredited college or university, including fifteen (15) semester units (22 quarter units) in social welfare, social/human services, sociology, or other social or behavioral science. **

* Qualifying social work case management includes direct case work management, such as: assessment, evaluation; conducting investigations of abuse and neglect; preparing court reports; responsibility for a long term caseload, monitoring compliance through home calls and other personal contact; collaboration with other agencies and linking clients to resources and programs; development of a case plan, modification of case plans as needed/required; and authority to impose sanctions or implement actions that impact services.

** Examples of acceptable social or behavioral science courses include: anthropology, criminal justice, education, ethnic studies, history, human development, law, human services, nursing, nutrition, psychology, public health, social welfare, sociology, welfare, women’s studies.

OR

Pattern 3:

Bachelor’s degree and successful completion of 24 semester or 36 quarter units of a Master’s degree program in Social Work, or a Counseling program from an accredited college or university, emphasizing Marriage, Family and Child Counseling or Marriage and Family therapy, Gerontology or Clinical Psychology, and twelve (12) months of social work case management experience*

*Qualifying social work case management includes direct case work management, such as: assessment, evaluation; conducting investigations of abuse and neglect; preparing court reports; responsibility for a long term caseload, monitoring compliance through home calls and other personal contact; collaboration with other agencies and linking clients to resources and programs; development of a case plan, modification of case plans as needed/required; and authority to impose sanctions or implement actions that impact services.

REQUIRED CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

• Possess and maintain a valid California Class C driver’s license or the ability to provide suitable transportation that is approved by the appointing authority.
• Be available to work a flexible schedule, including evenings, weekends, holidays, and during times of disaster and/or emergency, travel out of County to attend meetings.
• Successfully complete a background check to include fingerprinting.

BENEFITS:
The County of Monterey offers an excellent benefits package. Please visit our website to view the Bargaining Unit K Benefit Summary Sheet . This information is not legally binding, nor does it serve as a contract. The benefits listed in the Monterey County Personnel Policies and Practices Resolution or Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) prevail over this listing.

NOTES:
As a condition of employment, prospective employees may be required to submit to a background review which may include a review of information concerning present and/or prior employment, driving record, and record of any criminal convictions. Employment is contingent upon acceptable documentation verifying identity and authorization for employment in the U.S.; a list of acceptable documents is available on the USCIS Form I-9. If you are hired into this classification in a temporary position, your rate of pay will be hourly, and you will not be eligible for the benefits listed in the summary.

Additional Information

APPLICATION & SELECTION PROCEDURES
Apply on-line at https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/montereycounty

by the final filing date of Friday, August 22, 2025 at 11:59 PM (PST)

or

Hard copy applications may be obtained from and submitted during normal business hours,

Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM by contacting:

Monterey County Health Department

Attn: Human Resources Division

1270 Natividad Road

Salinas, CA 93906.

Phone: (831) 755 - 4519 Fax: (831) 796 - 8682

The selection process is tentative, and applicants will be notified if changes are made. To assess applicants' possession of required qualifications, the examination process may include an oral examination, pre-examination exercises, performance examination, and/or written examination. The competitive examination process includes submittal of required application materials. A complete application package will include:

• A completed County of Monterey Employment Application
• Responses to the Supplemental Questions

Applicants who fail to provide all required materials by the final filing deadline will not be considered. Resumes, cover letters, letters of interest, and other correspondence will not be accepted as a substitute for required application materials. All required application materials will be competitively evaluated. Those applicants that are determined to be the most appropriately qualified will be invited to participate further in the selection process.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY AND REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION:
Monterey County is a drug-free workplace and an equal opportunity employer. The County seeks candidates who can make contributions in an environment of cultural and ethnic diversity. Monterey County is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. To request reasonable accommodation, contact Monique Ng, Human Resources Analyst, at (831) 755 - 4524 or ngmc@countyofmonterey.gov.

http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/government/departments-a-h/human-resources/human-resources/benefits/benefit-summary-sheet

Closing Date/Time: 8/22/2025 11:59 PM Pacific

Salary:

$6,339.84 - $8,658.52 Monthly