Unit Mitigation Peer Specialist

Job Type: Full-time

Schedule

Shift: Office Day (8:30 am – 5 pm). Days Off: Saturday and Sunday. Location varies – Hobson, Interbay, & North Star.

About the role

DESC is a nationally recognized innovator and leader in developing solutions to homelessness. As a social services organization, supportive housing operator, and licensed behavioral health treatment provider, DESC serves approximately 3,000 people at any given time. The Unit Mitigation Peer Specialist (UMPS) joins a multidisciplinary Unit Condition Response Team to support tenants with chronic issues and co‑occurring disorders, maintain unit condition standards, and implement preventative solutions that promote housing stability. Peer Specialists draw on their own recovery experience to provide advocacy, symptom management, and mentorship, ensuring tenants’ perspectives are respected and integrated into treatment.

Responsibilities

• Participate as a member of the multi‑disciplinary Unit Conditions team providing on‑going services to adults with severe and persistent mental illnesses.
• Provide peer counseling and support, drawing on common experiences as a peer, to validate tenants’ experiences and encourage active participation in recovery.
• Serve as a mentor to tenants to promote hope, empowerment, and stability in housing.
• Assist with unit inspection preparation in collaboration with the treatment team and client, including apartment cleaning, organizing, and basic repairs.
• Regularly review and modify assigned tenants' Housing Stability Plan with the care team to address unit condition issues.
• Advocate for tenants' access to community resources and services, ensuring needs are met and rights maintained; consult and collaborate with providers to ensure continuity of care and facilitate linkages to resources.
• Mitigate in‑unit issues including pest infestation, sanitation, and property damage.
• Develop, design, and implement mitigation strategies to limit frequency or severity of unit damage in assigned units, including installing features designed to limit future damage.
• Assist other staff with large cleaning projects, including unit clean‑outs and unit turnovers, as necessary or assigned.
• Communicate repair or extensive cleaning needs to supervisor before starting work, seeking assistance for maintenance work beyond personal skill level.
• Organize and lead individual and group social and site‑based activities to help participants structure their time, increase social experiences, and practice daily living skills.
• Perform mentoring, problem solving, encouragement and support pertaining to living/unit conditions.
• Other duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Current Certified Peer Support Specialist (CPSS) or Certified Peer Support Specialist Trainee (CPSS‑T) credential through the Washington State Department of Health, or ability to obtain certification within 60 days of hire.
• Proof of successful completion of the Washington State Health Care Authority's Certified Peer Support Specialist Training prior to hire.
• Lived experience as a consumer of behavioral health services (mental health and/or substance use treatment) or be the parent or legal guardian of a child who has received behavioral health services.
• Demonstrated ability to address basic maintenance and repair needs in a residential setting.
• Ability to organize workload and complete duties with minimum direct supervision.
• Strong oral and written communication skills with people from various backgrounds.
• Ability to handle a wide range of unpleasant and/or bizarre behavior from clients.
• Commitment to the philosophy of cooperation and continuity across programs and respect for clients.
• Ability to pass a Washington State criminal background check.

Preferred Qualifications

• Current CPSS or CPSS‑T certification from the Washington State Peer Counselor Training Program.
• One or more years' experience in community‑based behavioral health services or a similar industry serving a diverse client/participant population.
• High school diploma or G.E.D.
• Knowledge of household pests, sanitation protocols, and mitigation strategies.
• Strong de‑escalation knowledge and skills.
• Two or more years’ experience leveraging personal peer story as a peer specialist.
• Knowledge of de‑escalation skills, crisis intervention & stabilization, and harm reduction strategies.
• Familiarity with relevant community resources and methods for accessing them.
• Bilingual.

Physical Demands

The position requires prolonged sitting, frequent communication with coworkers, and the ability to lift and carry items up to 40 lb. Vision requirements include close, distance, color, peripheral, depth perception, and focus adjustment. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

Benefits

• Medical coverage (no premiums/payroll deductions for employee coverage)
• Dental coverage
• Life insurance
• Long‑Term Disability
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
• ORCA Card subsidy
• Paid Time Off
• Retirement plan

Pay

$41.24 – $45.53 per hour