Temporary Appointment of Staff Counsellor, P-4, UNICEF Global Shared Services Centre, Budapest, Hungary # 113808

The P-4 Staff Counsellor is expected to provide expertise to UNICEF management and staff of the GSSC, PFP and EMOPS; to support the overall well-being of UNICEF staff and their families The post will contribute towards the corporate framework for Staff Well-Being and promote its implementation at the division level. The framework identifies activities aimed at raising awareness about mental health and healthy work practices; improving the work-life balance of UNICEF staff; facilitating the provision of assistance to staff/family experiencing work-related and/or personal problems; facilitating the provision of immediate support following a traumatic incident and related tasks. The Staff Counsellor will coordinate and work in collaboration with the network of UN counsellors including staff counsellors in NYHQ.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, results

UNICEF's Global Shared Services Centre (GSSC) in Budapest, Hungary provides services to UNICEF offices globally in the areas of Finance, Human Resources, Payroll and Information Technology.

UNICEF is striving for a work environment where staff wellness, resilience and work-life balance are integrated parts of the organizational culture. Due to the nature and location of their work, UNICEF staff are frequently exposed to high levels of day to day, cumulative stress, including those stressors related to their workload as well as the demands related to living and working in multicultural, often unstable and insecure, environments.

The position is office-based, located in the Global Shared Services Centre (GSSC) and reports to the Director, GSSC (Post #94172) and the Technical Supervision of the NYHQ Chief Staff Counsellor and works in close collaboration with the Chief of HR Operations in GSSC and Chief of HR in PFP. It serves UNICEF Global Shared Services Centre (GSSC), Private Fund Raising & Partnership (PFP) & Office of Emergency Programme (EMOPS) staff and contributes to the global staff well-being functions and activities.

How can you make a difference?

The P-4 Staff Counsellor is expected to provide expertise to UNICEF management and staff of the GSSC, PFP and EMOPS; to support the overall well-being of UNICEF staff and their families.

The post will contribute towards the corporate framework for Staff Well-Being and promote its implementation at the division level. The framework identifies activities aimed at raising awareness about mental health and healthy work practices; improving the work-life balance of UNICEF staff; facilitating the provision of assistance to staff/family experiencing work-related and/or personal problems; facilitating the provision of immediate support following a traumatic incident and related tasks.

The Staff Counsellor will coordinate and work in collaboration with the network of UN counsellors including staff counsellors in NYHQ.

This will involve

1. Under the Director, GSSC, the NYHQ Staff Counsellor and in close collaboration with the Chief of HR Operations in GSSC and Chief of HR in PFP, facilitate the development, implementation and coordination of a framework aiming at improved Staff Well-Being at the division level and, where required, globally:

• Assist in developing the framework;
• Develop strategies for implementing the framework in the division;
• Monitor the impact of the framework in GSSC; and,
• Lobby and provide input for improvements.

2. Facilitate the provision of effective psycho-social support to staff leadership, managers and individual staff with the aim to mitigate stress and boost protective factors by:

• Providing support and advice to the leadership and managers on healthy work practices and approaches on how to effectively support
• staff and encourage resilience.
• Recommending suitable staff support strategies to managers during and following emergencies and other crises.
• Providing staff with individual and/or group counselling as needed (i.e. assessment, short-term intervention, referral).
• Facilitating the treatment of psychiatric disorders primarily through referrals, including to the medical services, and through guidance to supervisors and senior management, where appropriate.
• Contributing to identification of creative ways of extending a network of external mental health providers available to provide services to staff around the world.
• Coordinating the division network of Peer Support Volunteers (PSVs), including selection, training and technical supervision.
• Coordinate with UNDSS, agency counsellors and PSVs, to ensure the provision of adequate psychosocial support.
• Assess and monitor psycho-social needs and issues affecting the wellbeing of staff.

3. Provide Critical Incident Stress Management to groups-and/or individual staff following critical incidents, employing a holistic which may include services such as practical support. Psycho-education, psychological first aid, strategic advice to leadership, family support and individual or group interventions by:

• Contacting the affected staff member(s) and offering information about typical stress reactions, support and referral information;
• Facilitating appropriate traumatic stress interventions, following a critical incident or traumatic event;
• Recommending and arranging for individual and/or group follow-up support to staff and their dependents.

4. Training and awareness raising on Staff Well-Being related topics:

• Explore and contribute to the development of new modalities, such as e-learning and webinars, which make awareness raising material available and attractive to all staff;
• Cooperate with PFP and EMOPS to integrate subjects such as health work practices, managing stress and trauma, building resiliency, etc.,
• into global staff well-being learning strategies, in consultation with and guidance by the Chief of Human Resources in GSSC.
• Develop wellbeing training module for supply division staff as part of the core learnings.
• Establish the pre and post deployment wellbeing training for supply community staff undertaking missions in emergency duty stations.

5. Any other duties, as assigned by the supervisor.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• Advanced University degree in counselling, clinical psychology or related mental health profession. Additional training or certification in staff support and traumatic/critical incident stress as well as a broad range of related fields, such as alcohol/substance abuse, family counselling, training, stress management.
• Minimum eight years of professional experience in staff support, mental health, cross cultural communications, counselling, and related areas, preferably gained within the UN system or international development/humanitarian aid sector.
• Track record showing resourcefulness and keen social awareness and sound judgement pertaining to common counselling caveats, e.g. overzealous client advocacy, burnout, the need for self-care and personal counselling. An empathic non-judgmental clinical approach with tact and confidentiality.
• Evidence of previous experience in adhering to professional boundaries, e.g. administrating only those services for which supervised training has been administered.
• Fluency in written and spoken English.
• Knowledge of another UN language will be an asset.

International Professional (IP) staff are recruited internationally and serve in duty stations outside their country of nationality. They hold leadership, managerial or specialist functions.

Duration

This is a Temporary Appointment for a duration of 6 months. The anticipated start date of this Temporary Appointment is as soon as possible.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

View our competency framework at: http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/UNICEF_Competencies.pdf

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.