POSITION: Farmworker Legal Services (FLS), a non-profit law office, is seeking a bilingual outreach worker to join a dynamic and committed farmworker and immigrant rights advocacy team. The position is union supported and based out of our Kalamazoo office with a flexible and remote work schedule option.
DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM: FLS is a statewide division of the Michigan Advocacy Program (MAP). FLS fights for justice and dignity alongside the farmworker community through our systemic, multi-forum legal advocacy, community engagement, and direct legal representation of farmworkers in their civil legal matters. Our bilingual advocates provide a full range of civil legal services to Michigan’s eligible population of migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their dependents. FLS case priorities include wage theft, trafficking, discrimination, sexual harassment, workplace health and safety, housing, civil rights, and immigration. For more than 50 years, MAP has worked to advance the safety, independence, and economic stability of those most affected by poverty, racism, and other structurally oppressive systems by increasing access to justice and working for systemic solutions. Visit farmworkerlaw.org and miadvocacy.org for more information.
RESPONSIBILITIES: In collaboration with colleagues, the outreach paralegal will primarily focus on community engagement: developing community legal education materials; training migrant, seasonal, and immigrant farmworkers; collaborating with local community programs; and conducting in-person outreach and legal screenings at migrant labor camps and community events throughout Michigan. The outreach paralegal will develop outreach plans, provide guidance to summer student interns, and maintain records and reporting about the outreach activities using computer applications. The paralegal will also assist the legal team with all aspects of their work such as the development of legal documents, correspondence with parties, scheduling, interpreting/translating, and communicating directly with clients. This position will require extensive travel throughout the state of Michigan and work in the evenings and/or on weekends during the outreach season.
QUALIFICATIONS:
Applicants must possess:
- Paralegal studies or high school graduate or its equivalent with three or more years of work experience
- Ability to effectively communicate, orally and in writing, in both English and Spanish
- Access to dependable transportation
- Demonstrated commitment to workers’ rights, immigrants, victims of crime, low-income individuals, farmworkers, or underserved populations through lived or learned experiences
- Cultural competency, including understanding the unique needs of low-wage workers and the ability to establish trust with client communities and communicating with patience, empathy, and sensitivity necessary to effectively work with people experiencing difficult and traumatic life circumstances
- Excellent communication, analytical, and problem-solving skills
Priority will be given to those with:
- Proficiency in Haitian Creole or indigenous languages native to Mexico or Central America
- Advanced understanding of the legal, administrative, and judicial system as evidenced by relevant legal employment experience and skills, or professional certification as described in credentialing
- Prior experience with employment law, immigration law, working with immigrant workers, or legal aid
BENEFITS: This is a full-time position with a salary range depending on experience and starting at $45,900. MAP offers a generous benefits package including life, short- and long-term disability, health, vision, dental and flexible spending accounts. If staff do not require health benefits, they have the option to take an annual $1,500 payout in addition to the base salary paid over the course of the year. MAP also has a generous leave policy allowing staff to accrue 3 weeks paid vacation the first year and 13 paid holidays, as well as an annual 2% contribution and 2% match to retirement plan subject to board approval for eligible staff. MAP is a qualifying employer for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. MAP is a unionized program. Kalamazoo is a college town in southwest Michigan, located 35 miles east of Lake Michigan and two hours from Chicago and Detroit, that offers the Kalamazoo Promise (an independent scholarship program that provides students who graduate from Kalamazoo Public Schools up to 100% tuition for post-secondary education).
TO APPLY: Please complete this application and submit your resume and cover letter. You can also access the application by copying and pasting the following web address into your browser: https://miadvocacy.bamboohr.com/careers/64. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.
The Michigan Advocacy Program is an equal opportunity employer, committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace.