Job Title: Housing Advocate Reports to: Manager of Community-Based Victim Services Working

Conditions: The position is part-time (24 hours/week) with an hourly rate of $21.95. Work is conducted in person at an undisclosed location in Vancouver, BC.

Organizational Overview: Established in 1979, BWSS (Battered Women’s Support Services) takes action to end gender-based violence and violence against women through community-based interventions, support services, legal and systemic advocacy, education and training, violence prevention, research, and policy.

Job Highlight: The Housing Advocate brings a wealth of resources and networks to support cis and trans women, femmes, transfeminine people, and their families who are in need of secure and stable housing.

Job Summary: The Women’s Housing Advocate creates a community of support and builds upon the matrix of services and advocacy provided by BWSS for women, femmes, and girls. This includes providing individual and group support, responding directly to instances of precarious housing, safety planning, and securing or retaining housing.

Primary Roles and Responsibilities:

• Work within a multidisciplinary team to ensure an effective response for girls, women, and femmes dealing with the impacts of violence and abuse, in collaboration with our support services and external resources.
• Facilitate weekly support groups.
• Provide ongoing one-to-one support to women/girls.
• Provide assessment and referral for survivors of violence, as well as practical assistance for filling out housing forms as needed.
• Assist with the overall operation of crisis-related services as needed.
• Provide safety assessments and support, advocacy, and referrals as needed.
• Welcome visitors to the office.
• Answer the BWSS crisis and intake line.
• Complete program statistics.
• Write program reports.
• Act as a resource person for the community and for BWSS staff.
• Facilitate communication with other feminist organizations concerned with violence against women and anti-oppression.
• Work with the Leadership Team (consisting of the Director of Clinical Practice and Direct Services, Executive Director, and Board of Directors) to develop strong links and good public relations with community agencies.
• Stay informed about the policies and procedures of relevant community agencies.
• Participate in BWSS resource development activities as defined by the Resource Development team and/or Executive Director.

Qualifications and Skills:

• Strong feminist analysis of violence against women, girls, and femmes.
• Strong awareness of anti-oppression and decolonization.
• Demonstrated ability to take action in support of women’s liberation.
• Demonstrated ability to advocate on behalf of women institutionally and systemically.
• Knowledgeable about the dynamics of abuse and systemic barriers to housing.
• Demonstrated knowledge and training in working with diverse marginalized communities in Vancouver and Metro Vancouver, with the ability to work with women from various cultural communities.
• Strong understanding of women’s displacement and migration.
• Satisfactory criminal record check.
• Experience in women’s organizations and non-profit society environments.
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written.

Education and Experience:

• Minimum of two to four years providing crisis support for women survivors of violence.
• Extensive training and education in a directly related field.
• Strong feminist analysis of violence against women.
• Strong awareness of anti-oppression.
• Demonstrated cultural competency, including awareness of diverse marginalized communities and ability to work with women from various cultural communities.
• Commitment to and practice of anti-oppression.
• Strong conflict resolution skills and demonstrated ability to work as a member of a team.

Classification:

• Part-time position at 24 hours per week (Additional evenings and weekends may be required) with an hourly rate of $21.95.
• This position requires union membership.
• Ability to speak another language is an asset.

Preferential and limited hiring assist BWSS in achieving diverse and equitable representation in the workplace and recruiting employees whose identities enrich how we accomplish our mission and serve the community; as a result, preference will be given to Indigenous women, Black women, racialized women, women who are disabled, femmes, transfeminine, and women from other equity-seeking groups.

Please send a cover letter and resume in (PDF format only) detailing how you meet or exceed these qualifications to Battered Women’s Support Services endingviolence@bwss.org. Please include the Housing Advocate in the subject line. This posting will remain open until filled.

No phone calls or messages through social media, including LinkedIn, please.

Download this job posting