April 17, 2012
We’re excited to be featured in the April 2012 issue of NISH Workplace magazine for our Administrative Services AbilityOne™ contract at Fort Huachuca Army Base, staffed with 100% U.S. Veterans.
The contract, based in our newest location in Sierra Vista, Arizona, has been thriving since last fall and is especially unique to AbilityOne, as it requires workers with higher-functioning skills for jobs such as administrative assistants, supply and warehouse technicians, and mail couriers…
April 11, 2012
Does your company have positions it can’t fill now because your applicant pool is lacking in skills? What are you doing about it?
In a Business Journalism article, author Melissa Preddy discusses reasons for long-term unemployment for certain individuals and lists a few key questions to get at the core issues:
• How does [HR managers'] vision compare with the resumes arriving in response?
• What mistakes or gaffes or skills deficiencies are they seeing on applications?
• What remedial training or coaching are employers providing these days?
• What schools, programs, certifications, & professional credentials make candidates attractive?
The idea of answering these questions and doing something about it now, taking the problem of workforce development into your own hands, was promoted by Donna Wells in a Fast Company article:
“It’s time organizations stop dreaming of perfect employees and start growing them.”
To focus on growing those skilled front-line workers in the food processing industry, Northwest Food Processors Association (NWFPA) and DePaul Industries collaborated to create the Heart of the Workforce (HOW) training program, leveraging basic food-processing-specific knowledge in a training course designed to get workers ready from day one. Instead of starting over on a regular basis, through each busy season cycle, HOW training allows workers to specialize in the industry—and advance from the front line. This reduces turnover rates, increases productivity, and benefits the company, worker, and community simultaneously:
Despite best efforts, however, regional—especially rural—talent gaps are still persistent. NWFPA, DePaul Industries and Impact Washington have created a workforce roundtable series called “Filling Regional Talent Gaps,” with its next appearance in Yakima, WA on April 25, 2012 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The cost is $49 a person, which includes meeting materials, a light breakfast, and lunch. Click here to register.
This regional forum discussion is designed to be highly interactive in order to define specific local challenges that food processors are facing. Presenters will describe many of the workforce solutions and practices being deployed and developed for other area clusters including:
• Pre-employment training programs
• Veterans as a valuable source of skilled labor
• Company incentives for hiring veterans
• Skill certification programs and the National Career Readiness Certificate
• Awareness of Productivity methods (Objectives Matrix, Lean and Sustainability to name a few)
Collaboration is key to overcoming the talent gap. What is your industry doing about?
April 4, 2012
Fire safety is a top priority to protect your business assets, but what happens when your business’ sprinkler or fire alarm system breaks down?
That’s where a Fire Watch team comes in. According to the Oregon State Fire Marshal, a Fire Watch is defined as “a temporary measure intended to ensure continuous and systematic surveillance of a building or portion thereof by one or more qualified individuals for the purposes of identifying and controlling fire hazards.” For large office buildings, medical centers, industrial complexes, and construction/renovation sites, a Fire Watch is required to be instituted—and dedicated personnel need to be assigned to do it. Why not hire a professional team to protect your business?
Our DePaul Fire Watch team has an in-house training program for Fire Watch personnel, ensuring knowledge and professionalism along with rapid response time. Our team systematically inspects for hazardous electrical, chemical, or flammable materials, and patrols a wide variety of types of facilities:
• Hospital Systems
• Office/Industrial Complexes
• Schools
• Construction/Renovation Sites
• Shipyards/Dry Docks
Fire Watch coverage is not only a requirement; it also just makes good business sense. Get in touch to learn more.
March 28, 2012
We’ve formed a new partnership with Albertina Kerr Centers, Port City Development Center, and Bethesda Lutheran Communities to expand the nationally-acclaimed Project SEARCH program in the Portland metro area. Our four organizations will combine resources to work together with large local businesses to improve employment opportunities for people with developmental disabilities.
Project SEARCH is a national workforce development program designed to simultaneously serve businesses and people with significant intellectual and developmental disabilities through an innovative career development approach. Participants are hired directly by large businesses and, working side-by-side with non-disabled colleagues, are supported by an on-site Project SEARCH job coach who acts as a single point of contact for training and accommodation. In this setting, participants have shown to decrease turnover rates and increase morale. DePaul Industries began spearheading the program in Oregon and has established successful partnerships with The Standard, Providence Health & Services, and Oregon Health & Science University.
Erin Riehle, Co-Founder of Project SEARCH at the Cincinnati, OH Children’s Hospital in 1996, weighs in with her thoughts: “I am very excited about The Project SEARCH Partnership, as I believe that this will enable the organizations involved to take the next step in the growth and development of the program. I am very appreciative of DePaul Industries’ efforts in spearheading Project SEARCH and in establishing relationships with some of the most prestigious businesses in the area.”
We’re excited for this collaboration particularly as an ideal methodology for Oregon’s ‘Employment First’ initiative, requiring that employment in integrated work settings be the priority option for adults with intellectual and other developmental disabilities. The primary focus of the partnership, however, is on the business solutions that Project SEARCH provides—reducing turnover, stabilizing departments, and leveraging a dedicated, qualified workforce.
“The Project SEARCH Partnership will result in fulfilling, integrated jobs for people with developmental disabilities,” says Dave Shaffer, our President & CEO. “In turn, these jobs will produce positive business results—as they already have shown in our current sites.”
We are determined to do more. To learn more about growing your business through Project SEARCH, get in touch today.
Here’s more information about our partnering organizations:
- Albertina Kerr Centers
Every day Albertina Kerr helps children, families and adults living with developmental disabilities and mental health challenges, empowering them to lead fuller, self-determined lives. A private non-profit organization founded in Portland in 1907, Kerr utilizes more than 91 cents of every dollar on programs and services for Oregonians. For more information about Albertina Kerr, call 503.239.8101 or visit AlbertinaKerr.org.
- Port City Development Center
Since 1978, Port City Development Center has been providing employment, job training and support services for people with developmental disabilities in the Portland metro community. Its production, art and farming, job development, community volunteers, fabric arts, silk-screening, woodworking, custodial and other programs provide meaningful work, skills building and community integrations opportunities for individuals with disabilities. For more information on Port City Development Center, visit portcitydevelopment.org.
- Bethesda Lutheran Communities
Bethesda Lutheran Communities provides resources to educate friends, families, congregations and other service providers about developmental disabilities. For more information on Bethesda Lutheran Communities, visit bethesdalutherancommunities.org.
March 19, 2012
On the heels of a U.S Labor Department effort to encourage federal contractors to hire a minimum number of disabled workers or face penalty, the Wall Street Journal reported that a number of companies have “flooded the department with complaints that the rule amounts to a first-ever government quota for hiring disabled workers that would expose them to a thicket of legal pitfalls.” Bayer Corporation’s CEO Greg Babe responded with his two cents, maintaining his company’s support of the effort in contrast to what appeared to be a uniform distaste for the new policy by businesses—perhaps due to misconceptions about what employing people with disabilities really means. Babe makes a great point about our larger community: “Fifty million people with disabilities represent a broad cross-section of job seekers and a target market for goods and services.”
For all of the reasons to employ people with disabilities—and make a concerted effort to overcome misconceptions in order to do so—support for a business’ bottom line is the best way to get through to the vast majority of employers. If it makes good business sense, they’ll get on board.
Want more information about our employment of people with disabilities? Read more here.
