Drop-in Engagement Worker

Job Posting (internal-external) Drop-In Engagement Worker Contract Term: 1 Year Contract Pay Rate: $27.20/hr Bargaining Unit position ABOUT THE STOP: The Stop Community Food Centre’s mission is to increase access to healthy food in a manner that maintains dignity, builds community, and challenges inequality. From its origins 40+ years ago as one of Canada's first food banks, The Stop has since grown into a vibrant community centre that uses food as a gateway to addressing many issues, including poverty, the environment, social isolation, and health in one of Toronto’s lowest-income neighbourhoods. The Stop is accredited by Imagine Canada for excellence in non-profit accountability, transparency, and governance. THE OPPORTUNITY: The Drop-in Engagement worker is part of a cooperative team of people that works to create a safe, welcoming and dynamic space in which community members can have a healthy meal, access essential services and supports and participates in social and food-based programs and activities. Working in the Drop-In may require some physical effort (walking around Drop-In space, lifting, cleaning, and serving meals); the Drop-in engagement worker will be an active presence in the Drop-In space. There may be the risk of exposure to potentially unpredictable behaviours and situations. Key Duties & Responsibilities: - Ensure that the Drop-in space is safe, welcoming and inclusive to community members. - Apply and enforce food handling, sanitation and health and safety guidelines as required by Toronto Public Health - Assist with conflict prevention / resolution and provide crisis intervention support as necessary. - Ensure consistent and clear communication to support facilitation and enhance communication throughout the program. - Assist with cooking/preparing breakfast - Collaborate with Drop-in Support Worker to organize Drop-in activities and to provide additional support to program participants as necessary. - Provide direction to volunteers and relief staff to provide respectful and dignified services and to ensure daily tasks are accomplished. - Maintain daily program logs and assist with on-going program monitoring. - Work with co-workers to coordinate preparation of food and set-up of program space for services as necessary. - Ensure community resources and information is in place to refer participants to other community supports as needed. - Assist in the collection and recording of appropriate statistical information. - Participate in organizational events as needed. - Other related duties as assigned. General: - Ensure that Drop-in programming reflects The Stop’s policies and procedures (e.g. Anti-Discrimination/Anti-Harassment ) - Attend monthly all-staff meetings, weekly team debriefs and other meetings related to job description, as required - Participate in agency-wide events, as needed - Work within the team of Stop staff, board, and volunteers - Maintain administrative records, as required - Participate in training opportunities, as requested - Maintain knowledge of existing agency and program policies and procedures and implement them consistently Qualifications: - Educational background in social work/social services/human services work or equivalent education and lived experience. - Minimum 2yrs working in community services. - Experience in a commercial kitchen - Crisis intervention, de-escalation skills essential. - Highly developed interpersonal / communications skills and ability to build effective relationships with participants, team members and community partners. - Understanding of and experience working in programs serving participants with complex intersecting needs including homelessness, mental health issues, addictions and histories of trauma - strong understanding of client-centered, trauma-informed and anti-racism, anti-oppression practices. - Ability to work constructively as a member of a team in a fast-paced, dynamic environment. - Experience working with marginalized people and people of diverse cultures and abilities. - Additional languages besides English an asset.