Job Purpose

The Social Worker is responsible for supporting the identification, assessment, referral and follow-up of children who are engaged in or at risk of child labour and their families.

The position contributes directly to the project's child labour prevention and child protection objectives by identifying protection and social support needs, facilitating access to appropriate public and specialized services, monitoring referral outcomes, and supporting children's continued access to education and protection services.

The Social Worker will work closely with children, caregivers, schools, relevant public institutions, municipalities and service providers to ensure timely and appropriate referrals. The position will also maintain accurate and confidential case documentation, analyse recurring protection and child labour-related risks, and contribute to programme monitoring and reporting.

1. Child Labour Prevention and Early Identification

• Identify children who are engaged in, or at risk of, child labour through outreach activities, referrals, schools, families and relevant community and institutional networks.
• Assess child labour-related risks and contributing factors, including school absenteeism or dropout, household vulnerabilities, working conditions and other protection concerns.
• Support early identification of children at risk and facilitate timely intervention before children enter or remain in harmful forms of work.
• Work with children and caregivers to increase awareness of the risks and consequences of child labour and available support mechanisms.
• Support project activities aimed at preventing child labour and strengthening children's continued participation in education.

2. Assessment and Case Documentation

• Conduct individual and household-level assessments to identify protection, education, social assistance and other support needs of children and families.
• Document identified child labour and child protection concerns accurately and confidentially.
• Maintain complete and up-to-date case and referral records in accordance with organizational procedures and data protection requirements.
• Regularly review case information and identify changes in risks, needs and referral outcomes.
• Ensure sensitive information concerning children and families is handled in accordance with confidentiality, safeguarding and data protection principles.

3. Referral and Follow-Up

• Identify appropriate services and referral pathways based on the individual needs of children and their families.
• Refer children and families to relevant protection, education, social assistance, health, psychosocial, employment and other specialized services, as appropriate.
• Follow up referrals to determine whether children and families have accessed the required services and identify any barriers to access.
• Maintain accurate referral records and document referral outcomes.
• Escalate high-risk or complex protection cases in accordance with organizational safeguarding and referral procedures.

4. Coordination with Public Institutions and Service Providers

• Coordinate case-level referrals and follow-up with relevant public institutions and service providers.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with relevant Provincial and District Directorates of Family and Social Services, education authorities and schools, municipalities, Social Assistance and Solidarity Foundations (SYDV), İŞKUR and other relevant institutions and service providers.
• Participate in case-related meetings and coordination activities when required.
• Facilitate communication between children, caregivers and relevant institutions where necessary to support access to services.
• Follow established institutional referral pathways and ensure referrals are made in accordance with applicable project and organizational procedures.

5. Education Retention and Reintegration

• Identify children whose education is affected by child labour, including children experiencing absenteeism, irregular attendance or school dropout.
• Coordinate with schools, education authorities and families to support children's continued participation in education.
• Support referrals and follow-up for children requiring educational reintegration or additional education-related assistance.
• Monitor education-related outcomes of referred children where appropriate.
• Identify barriers affecting children's school attendance and communicate relevant findings to the Field Expert and programme team.

6. Family Support and Awareness

• Engage with parents and caregivers to identify household-level factors contributing to child labour risks.
• Provide families with information on available public services, social assistance and relevant referral mechanisms.
• Support caregivers in accessing appropriate social protection and assistance mechanisms.
• Conduct or contribute to awareness sessions with families on child labour prevention, child protection, education and available services.
• Encourage family participation in actions aimed at reducing children's exposure to child labour and other protection risks.

7. Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting

• Maintain accurate records of identified cases, assessments, referrals, follow-up actions and outcomes.
• Regularly analyse case information to identify recurring child labour risks, protection concerns, service gaps and barriers affecting children and families.
• Provide regular updates to the Field Expert on case trends, referral outcomes and emerging protection concerns.
• Contribute to programme monitoring by providing accurate information on child labour identification, referrals and service access.
• Support preparation of periodic programme reports, case summaries and analysis as required.
• Contribute to identification of lessons learned and recommendations for improving child labour prevention and referral activities.

8. Safeguarding and Confidentiality

• Ensure that all interactions with children and families follow child safeguarding, PSEA and do-no-harm principles.
• Maintain strict confidentiality of personal and case information.
• Ensure informed and appropriate communication with children and caregivers throughout assessment and referral processes.
• Immediately report safeguarding concerns through established organizational reporting mechanisms.
• Ensure that the best interests of the child are considered throughout all interventions.

9. Field Coordination

• Conduct regular field visits to schools, households, communities, public institutions and service providers as required.
• Work closely with the Field Expert, Mobile Outreach Worker, Safeguarding Expert and other programme staff.
• Support outreach activities aimed at identifying children at risk of child labour and other protection concerns.
• Participate in project meetings, case reviews and field planning activities.
• Provide field-level information on emerging child labour and protection trends to support programme planning.

Required Qualifications and Experience

• University degree in Social Work.
• Minimum 2–3 years of relevant professional experience in social work, child protection, child labour prevention or community-based protection programmes.
• Previous experience in child labour prevention, identification of children engaged in or at risk of child labour, and/or related protection interventions is strongly preferred.
• Experience in case identification, assessment, referral, follow-up and documentation involving vulnerable children and families.
• Experience working and coordinating with public institutions and service providers, particularly Family and Social Services authorities, education authorities and schools, municipalities, SYDV, İŞKUR and other relevant institutions, is strongly preferred.
• Knowledge of child protection, child labour prevention, social assistance, education and referral mechanisms in Türkiye.
• Experience in maintaining and analysing case and referral data is an asset.
• Understanding of child safeguarding, confidentiality, informed consent and data protection principles.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills and ability to work effectively with children, caregivers and institutional counterparts.
• Ability to prepare clear case documentation, summaries and programme inputs.
• Fluency in Turkish; additional languages relevant to the target population are an asset.
• Ability and willingness to undertake regular field visits.

Key Competencies

Child Labour Prevention and Identification · Child Protection · Case Assessment and Referral · Case Documentation and Analysis · Public Institution Coordination · Education Retention and Reintegration · Family Engagement · Safeguarding and Confidentiality · Communication and Interpersonal Skills · Field-Based Social Work · Teamwork and Coordination · Monitoring and Reporting

Safeguarding Statement

Odak Derneği is committed to safeguarding children and vulnerable individuals and maintains zero tolerance for sexual exploitation, abuse, harassment and any other form of misconduct. The selected candidate will be required to comply with the organization's Child Safeguarding, PSEA, Code of Conduct, confidentiality and data protection policies. Reference checks and other appropriate pre-employment checks may be conducted as part of the recruitment process.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Odak Derneği is an equal opportunity employer. Applications are assessed on the basis of the qualifications, experience and competencies required for the position, without discrimination on the grounds of gender, age, disability, ethnic or social origin, religion, belief or any other protected characteristic.

Job Purpose

The Mobile Outreach Worker is responsible for conducting field-based outreach activities to identify and engage children and families who are vulnerable to or at risk of child labour and other protection concerns.

The position contributes directly to the project's child labour prevention and early identification objectives by identifying children who are engaged in or at risk of child labour, recognizing factors that may increase children's vulnerability to child labour, providing families with information on available services, and facilitating timely referral to the Social Worker and relevant project staff.

The Mobile Outreach Worker will maintain regular contact with children, caregivers, schools, communities and relevant local stakeholders to support early identification, prevention and access to appropriate protection, education and social support services.

1. Child Labour Prevention and Risk Identification

• Conduct regular outreach activities to identify children who are engaged in or at risk of child labour.
• Identify early warning signs and factors that may increase children's vulnerability to child labour, including school absenteeism or dropout, household economic vulnerability, family circumstances and other protection concerns.
• Identify children who may require further protection assessment or specialized support and refer them to the Social Worker.
• Support early intervention activities aimed at preventing children from entering or remaining in child labour.
• Provide children and caregivers with basic information on child labour risks, children's rights, education and available support services.
• Report emerging child labour risks and trends observed during field activities to the Field Expert and Social Worker.

2. Community and Family Outreach

• Conduct regular outreach visits to communities, households, schools and other relevant locations.
• Establish contact with vulnerable children and families and provide information about available project services.
• Support identification of families facing social and economic vulnerabilities that may contribute to child labour risks.
• Encourage children and caregivers to access relevant protection, education and social support services.
• Support awareness activities on child labour prevention, child protection and education.

3. Early Identification and Referral

• Conduct initial identification and basic screening of children and families encountered through outreach activities.
• Identify child labour, school attendance, protection and social support concerns requiring further assessment.
• Refer identified children and families to the Social Worker for detailed assessment, referral and follow-up.
• Immediately report urgent or high-risk protection concerns in accordance with established safeguarding and referral procedures.
• Follow established project referral pathways and maintain appropriate documentation of referrals.

4. Education and School Engagement

• Support identification of children experiencing school absenteeism, irregular attendance or school dropout that may be associated with child labour risks.
• Maintain communication with relevant schools and education personnel as directed by the Field Expert.
• Encourage families to support children's continued participation in education.
• Refer children requiring education-related support to the Social Worker and relevant programme staff.

5. Coordination with Local Stakeholders

• Maintain regular field-level communication with schools, municipalities, community representatives and relevant local service providers.
• Support project outreach activities conducted in coordination with public institutions and local stakeholders.
• Share information on available project and referral services with relevant local actors.
• Support the Field Expert and Social Worker during joint field visits and coordination activities where required.

6. Field Monitoring and Documentation

• Maintain accurate records of outreach visits, individuals reached, identified child labour risks and referrals.
• Document observations concerning emerging child labour and protection risks in target locations.
• Provide regular field updates to the Field Expert and Social Worker.
• Contribute field-level information to programme monitoring and reporting.
• Support identification of changes in child labour patterns, vulnerable groups and barriers to accessing services.

7. Awareness, Information and Visibility Activities

• Support the organization and delivery of awareness sessions for children, caregivers and communities.
• Disseminate approved information on child labour prevention, child protection, education and available public services.
• Support community-level activities promoting children's continued participation in education and protection from harmful work.
• Ensure that information provided to children and families is clear, appropriate and consistent with approved project messages.
• Carry out the project's and the organization's communication and visibility activities, including the preparation and dissemination of approved visibility materials and field content.
• Contribute to documenting field activities, observations, outcomes and good practices for communication and reporting purposes.
• Ensure that any information, photographs, stories or other content concerning children and families is collected, prepared and shared in accordance with safeguarding, confidentiality, informed consent and data protection requirements.
• Coordinate with the Field Expert and relevant programme staff to ensure that external communication and visibility content is accurate, appropriate and consistent with approved project and organizational messages.

8. Safeguarding and Confidentiality

• Conduct all outreach activities in accordance with child safeguarding, PSEA and do-no-harm principles.
• Maintain confidentiality of information concerning children and families.
• Ensure respectful and child-sensitive communication during outreach activities.
• Immediately report safeguarding concerns through established organizational procedures.
• Ensure that children are not exposed to additional risks through outreach, identification or referral activities.

9. Team Coordination

• Work closely with the Field Expert, Social Workers, Safeguarding Expert and other programme staff.
• Participate in regular field planning and team coordination meetings.
• Provide information on field-level challenges, emerging risks and outreach needs.
• Support joint field activities and follow agreed outreach plans and schedules.

Required Qualifications and Experience

• University degree or relevant educational background in Social Services, Social Work, Sociology, Psychology, Child Development, Education or another relevant field.
• Minimum 2-3 years of relevant experience in community outreach, child protection, child labour prevention, social services or humanitarian/development programmes.
• Experience in identifying children engaged in or at risk of child labour and recognizing child labour-related vulnerability factors is strongly preferred.
• Experience working directly with vulnerable children, families and communities.
• Knowledge of child labour prevention, child protection and education-related risks is an asset.
• Experience working with schools, municipalities, public institutions or community-based service providers is an asset.
• Understanding of basic referral, safeguarding and confidentiality principles.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability and willingness to conduct regular field visits and mobile outreach activities.
• Fluency in Turkish; additional languages relevant to the target population are an asset.

Key Competencies

Child Labour Risk Identification · Child Labour Prevention · Community Outreach · Early Identification and Screening · Child Protection Awareness · Referral · Family and Child Engagement · Field Monitoring · Safeguarding and Confidentiality · Communication · Teamwork · Field-Based Work