Casework Specialist

Update

The United Nations is committed to promoting and protecting human rights, strengthening accountability, and ensuring access to safe and effective complaint mechanisms for individuals and communities.

The UN System in Uzbekistan receives a large number of individual petitions, communications, complaints and requests for assistance. Due to the increasing volume and complexity of communications received, the Office seeks the support of a National UN Volunteer to strengthen complaint intake, case management, research, documentation, and stakeholder communication processes. The assignment will contribute to improving accessibility, responsiveness, and efficiency of the complaints-handling mechanism while ensuring respect for confidentiality, data protection, and protection-sensitive approaches.

The position of the National UN Volunteer is located in the Office of the UN Resident Coordinator in Uzbekistan. S/he will be working under the direct supervision of the Human Rights Officer in Uzbekistan of the Regional Office for Central Asia of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and in close collaboration with her/his team.
- Receive individual communications and complaints, sent in written form or electronically;
- Receive phone calls from individuals, intending to submit a communication to the UN during the designated weekly reception hours on the dedicated UN intake line;
- Where an in-person appointment has been explicitly agreed following initial assessment, or in exceptional cases as authorised by the supervisor, meet individuals and provide clarifications on the procedures of submission of communications and complaints to the UN or other relevant information (as necessary, in the presence of a UN Security Guard);
- Review submissions through the prism of international human rights standards and assist in their categorization;
- In case of absence of a potential human rights violation, draft a standard response, based on the approved template;
- In case of a potential human rights violation, request additional information and supporting documentation, as needed, and provide information on the UN Human Rights System, available procedures and mechanisms, in written or oral form, as relevant;
- Where the case falls within the mandate of other UN Agencies (women's rights, child's rights, refugees' rights, etc.) or the work of relevant state bodies or civil society organisations, advise on or support referral as appropriate;
- Support the clearance of the existing backlog of communications and complaints, applying the same admissibility criteria and follow-up procedures;
- Input, register and track cases in the relevant case management database, recording actions taken, outcomes and status updates for each case, and supporting routine database upkeep;
- Maintain and regularly update the list of organizations for referral of individual cases;
- Maintain organized electronic and physical case files, including timely archiving of supporting documents;
- Analyse trends and recurring issues emerging from cases, and assist in compiling statistics and data visualisations to support reporting;
- Apply protection-sensitive and survivor-centred approaches in all interactions with complainants;
- Handle sensitive information securely and confidentially in line with UN data protection and ethical standards;
- Report any safeguarding or retaliation concerns to the supervisor promptly;