Work & Family Program Director

The Organization

Legal Aid at Work (LAAW) partners with people to help them understand and assert their workplace rights, and advocates for employment laws and systems that empower low-paid workers and marginalized communities.

LAAW has seven core program areas: (1) Community Legal Services; (2) Disability & Health Justice; (3) Gender Equity & LGBTQ Rights; (4) National Origin and Immigrants’ Rights; (5) Racial Economic Justice; (6) Wage Protection; and (7) Work & Family. Through these programs, LAAW:

  • Provides free, individualized legal advice and counsel throughout California to thousands of low-income workers;
  • Pursues targeted enforcement and impact litigation to strengthen and clarify the law;
  • Conducts community outreach and education for workers, their advocates, their families, and their health and social service providers; and
  • Advocates for laws, regulations, and policies at the local, state, and national levels to strengthen civil and workplace rights.

As a social justice organization, Legal Aid at Work’s mission is rooted in the firm belief that all people deserve respect, dignity, and self-determination at work, at school, and in their communities. Structural and systemic racism—with the oppression of Black and Indigenous people at its core—and other forms of injustice shape the society and the civic, political, and legal systems in which we work and live. Legal Aid at Work is committed to developing and nurturing an organizational culture that will dismantle systems of oppression, uplift people from underrepresented communities, and create a workplace that is truly equitable and inclusive. As such, we strongly encourage BIPOC candidates and those with lived experiences and low-income workers to apply.

Summary

Legal Aid at Work seeks a Program Director (PD) for our Work & Family Program. The Program empowers workers who are parents, pregnant, family caregivers, or caring for their own health to fight discrimination and access time off from work, paid leave, and other workplace accommodations to care for themselves and their families without risking their jobs and income. Through SURVIVE Project, the team also protects the rights of survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking to keep their jobs and obtain accommodations and protected leave. The team aims to focus its work on the rights of Black birthing people, LGBTQ families, and immigrant workers.

The Program has a long history of success in providing robust direct services through the Project SURVIVE and Work and Family helplines, securing landmark legislative wins, and defending workers’ rights in low-wage jobs and industries. The Team advocates for systems and policy change to advance the rights of working families by partnering with families, healthcare and social service providers, and government agencies.

LAAW seeks candidates with a deep commitment to protecting and expanding paid leave and reasonable accommodations policies and programs. Candidates with experience advancing workers’ and family rights, reproductive justice, and justice for workers affected by domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking are strongly preferred. We are keen to bring on a PD who will lead the development of a litigation docket with an emphasis on strategic enforcement and innovative litigation strategy, as well as continue to support other impact and systemic legal advocacy. This is an exciting opportunity for a civil rights attorney with leadership experience to usher in strategic planning and growth for the program. The ideal candidate will have enthusiasm and a proven commitment for impactful litigation and legal advocacy in the family and reproductive justice rights space, as well as excitement to build a docket of cases. A demonstrated commitment to and experience working in collaboration with broader social movements to build collective power is essential.

Responsibilities

The Program Director will work within and across teams to further the goals of the Program, with an emphasis on setting and executing against the Program’s strategy and , building a litigation docket, and overseeing a team of Staff Attorneys, a Program Advocate, a Paralegal, and fellows and law clerks.

The Program Director is responsible for:

  • Developing strategy for the program in partnership with the VP of Programs and Litigation, the Director of Litigation, and the other legal staff on the team;
  • Managing and overseeing the direct services work through the Work and Family and SURVIVE helplines and where necessary, providing direct staffing support to the helplines;
  • Developing and overseeing the Program’s litigation docket, including class actions, representative actions, individual actions, and amicus work and other advocacy efforts;
  • Identifying areas for collaboration across Program teams;
  • Overseeing the Program’s collaborations with community partners;
  • Managing the Program administration, including preparing the program budget, coordinating program projects, supervising Program attorneys and staff, timekeeping, and assisting with the preparation of grant applications and reports.

Requirements

The following list of core competencies and experiences is provided to share insight into the requirements of the role and the general level of experience we seek in candidates. We encourage all qualified candidates and those with relevant or transferable experience to apply, even if you do not bring experience in all of the areas noted below.

Candidates must be active members of the California State Bar, however, LAAW will consider candidates located anywhere in the U.S. who are willing to travel to California as needed. Legal Aid at Work offers employees the flexibility to work primarily from home, contingent on business needs and professional responsibilities. Strong preference will be given to applicants with personal or professional experience working with impacted communities.

  • Demonstrated commitment to social justice and civil rights work; a passion for Legal Aid at Work’s mission of seeking justice for low-wage workers.
  • Demonstrate a client-centered approach to setting strategy, priorities, and delivering services;
  • A minimum of 8 years of legal experience with at least 5 years of litigation experience;
  • Experience working with low-wage workers and/or family or reproductive rights, preferably in California;
  • Experience with investigation, case development, and litigation including discovery, motion practice, hearings, trials and/or appeals in California and/or federal courts;
  • The ability to work collaboratively on a small team of attorneys and paralegals;
  • Experience managing multiple projects simultaneously, and prioritizing competing deadlines;
  • Willingness to develop projects on their own initiative;
  • Strong legal research, writing, and analytical skills;
  • The ability to think creatively about the law as a dynamic tool of social change, and to identify opportunities for law reform;
  • The ability to think strategically about the role of a legal nonprofit in supporting worker organizing efforts and improving the overall legal ecosystem for workers’ rights more broadly;
  • A commitment to racial equity work and incorporating racial equity principles into legal advocacy;
  • Ability to use tact and diplomacy when dealing with sensitive issues and to maintain confidentiality;
  • Strong interpersonal skills, initiative, leadership, and organizational abilities;
  • Willingness to coach and mentor law students, fellows, and junior attorneys;
  • A commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and the ability to hold and foster difficult and necessary conversations about sex, race, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, and other protected categories; and
  • The ability to travel as necessary within California and to other parts of the country for litigation, speaking events, meetings, and conferences.

Additional Preferred Qualifications

  • Knowledge of California employment law, administrative procedures, and/or paid leave programs or accommodations;
  • Fluency in Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, or other languages commonly spoken by low-wage workers in California.

Compensation

Legal Aid at Work offers salaries that are competitive in the public interest law community. Benefits include health plans, long-term disability and life insurance, 403(b) retirement plan, and generous paid vacation and holidays. As a unionized organization, Legal Aid at Work believes in the importance of employees organizing to improve their working conditions. This position is included in the bargaining unit represented by ESC Local 20. Salary placement at hire and salary advancement will be in accordance with the negotiated salary scale in the union contract for this position. The salary range for this position ranges from $97,344 to $187,063. Program Directors also receive a pro-rated premium annual payment of $15,000.

To Apply

Please email your resume, a cover letter detailing your interest in the position, a legal writing sample, and three references to:

Subject line: W&F Program Director
Email: jobs@legalaidatwork.org

Legal Aid at Work is committed to a diverse, multicultural work environment. LAAW is an equal opportunity, fair chance, and affirmative action employer. Our complete EEO and DEI statements as well as further information concerning the organization and its programs can be found at www.legalaidatwork.org.  Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, Legal Aid at Work will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment.