Community Interpreter (10-100%)

Caritas Schweiz

Key information

Publication date:06 March 2025
Workload:10 – 100%
Place of work:x

Job summary

Join Caritas Switzerland as a Community Interpreter! Work with refugees across Switzerland and 20 countries.

Tasks

Facilitate intercultural interpretation in health and social services.
Ensure accurate and confidential communication between parties.
Participate in ongoing training and internal meetings.

Skills

Fluent in one of the listed languages and reside in the specified canton.
Strong administrative and organizational skills required.
Experience in oral interpretation is essential.

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Act, quite simply. In Switzerland and in nearly 20 countries across four continents. Join us to realize the vision of a supportive society, as a

Community Interpreter (10-100%)

Our Migration & Integration Department of French-speaking Switzerland – a branch of Caritas Switzerland in Fribourg employing about a hundred staff – is responsible for the support and integration of recognized refugees in the canton of Fribourg. On behalf of the canton, we welcome newcomers in our home in Matran, help them find their own accommodation, provide personal and material assistance according to social welfare standards, and support them in steps towards professional and social integration.

Additionally, we manage a community interpreting service active in several French-speaking cantons as well as a listening and counseling service against racism for the residents of the canton of Fribourg. Our community interpreting service "se comprendre" is active in the cantons of Fribourg, Jura, and the French-speaking part of the canton of Bern. Its mission is to enable communication between allophone persons and institutions in the fields of health, social affairs, asylum, education/school, and justice. It consists of a small administrative team and more than 130 intercultural interpreters/mediators. We are currently looking for interpreters for the following languages and regions:

Amharic (Bernese Jura)
Hungarian (Fribourg)
Khmer/Cambodian (Fribourg)
Romanian (Fribourg, towards German B2 ideally C1 certified)
Somali (Fribourg, Jura and Bernese Jura)
Swiss German (Fribourg)
Thai (Fribourg, Jura or Bernese Jura)
Turkmen (Fribourg, Bernese Jura or Jura)

Your tasks

You ensure the interventions in intercultural interpreting mandated by the "se comprendre" Service (in person and/or by phone/videoconference) in the fields of health, social affairs, asylum, education/school, and justice
You guarantee a complete, exhaustive, and faithful translation between interlocutors respecting confidentiality and professional ethics rules
You participate in information and exchange meetings, internal continuing education, and supervisions

Our requirements

Your mother tongue is listed above and you live in the indicated canton
You have completed your professional training and have a good general knowledge
You have very good knowledge of French (ideally level C1, at least level B2 of the European Language Portfolio PEL)
You already have experience in oral interpreting
You hold the INTERPRET certificate or are interested in obtaining it
You are comfortable with common computer tools, have internet access, and own a smartphone
You have great availability during weekdays
Your strengths include a sense of responsibility, reliability, punctuality, flexibility, discretion, and you possess good administrative skills

Start date: Immediately or by agreement

Activity rate: On call and depending on languages: 10-100%

For more information about the position, contact Mr. Camilo Marquez, Advisor and head of the interpreter pool, tel. 026 425 81 31.

We thank you for your interest and look forward to receiving your application via the online portal.

Caritas Switzerland, Adligenswilerstrasse 15, 6002 Lucerne
www.caritas.ch