ReThinking UnEmployment A Non-Traditional Approach to Unemployment Issues A COSTLY problem There are people in your system - on your caseloads - who have been there too long. People unsuccessful in getting and/or staying employed, even with your interventions. These people could be working, but they just can't, or perhaps won't get it together. A complex combination of attitudes, skills and behaviours have trapped them in a lifestyle of unemployment, or an ongoing series of employment failures. They include: • Negative attitudes and behaviors • Lack of social and interpersonal skills • Lack of motivation or work ethic • Lack of commitment to change These are chronically unemployed people and they have exhausted most of the solutions available for getting people back to work. They are presumed unemployable and will be in need of income support for a very long time. It costs a great deal to abandon the chronically unemployed and to have them dependent on society for their income and well being. We need new ways to help us in reThinking unEmployment. AN EMPLOYMENT process for the chronically unemployed The reThinking unEmployment® process is a structured, cognitive and marketing skills training process designed to address the issues of the chronically unemployed. reThinking unEmployment® provides a non-traditional approach to unemployment issues. reThinking unEmployment® assumes that some people's inability to get and/or keep employment is a result of their lack of cognitive and marketing skills development, rather than purposeful or personal failure. Cognitive skills are the process skills we use to think. Thinking is the mindful activity directing most human behavior; thinking then behavior: thinking then feeling. If thinking skills are limited or faulty, then creating solutions for life's challenges is also limited and faulty. Our capacity to think effectively will determine our capacity to interact with our environment. Thinking skills can be taught through cognitive process development. Thinking skills are not equivalent to IQ. People can learn how to anticipate and think their way out of problems. Some people have never fully learned the cognitive processes necessary for effective thinking. These people have cognitive deficiencies, which often leads to their being socially marginalized, as seen in the chronically unemployed. Chronically unemployed people, once cognitively developed, need to access the job market to begin their journey back to long term employment. reThinking unEmployment® teaches a 3rd party supported, noncompetitive, cognitive skills and marketing strategy skill set. This approach has proven very successful in enabling individuals with significant employment barriers to secure and retain employment. reThinking unEmployment® develops the skill sets needed to succeed in an employment environment, as well as in daily lives. A FOCUS on results We evaluated the program at 7 sites serving unemployed, disadvantaged youth and adults in Ontario, Canada. The studies provide evidence that reThinking unEmployment® impacts significantly on three key employment issues: motivation, access and retention. 39 individuals assessed by their employment counselors as having "zero probability of employment" participated. These were unmotivated, long term social assistance clients with little or no employment history. • 33 clients were tracked over a period of 12 months following the program • 76% were employed, or had returned to school within 3 months of completion • 94% were employed, or returned to school within 6 months • 100% were employed, or returned to school within 9 months • 79% retained employment after 12 months These results substantiate a change in behaviour and attitude of the participants. reThinking unEmployment® brings about positive results and enduring employment outcomes. PROGRAM outline Benefits to Governments • Lowers government costs - people who required long term support can now take care of themselves • An ability to fulfill the mandate of developing some of our most difficult to help citizens - the long term unemployed • An increase in people moving from service users to tax Benefits to Service Providers • A program that can deal with motivational impediments and negative attitudes about working • Skills spill-over everywhere in the participants' lives - improving family, community and health situations, thus reducing the use of other support services • Easier, ongoing service provision as the chronically unemployed take responsibility for their own growth The program is: • Eight weeks long, including a short job trial • Delivered in a classroom by the organization or by our staff specifically trained in the program • Limited in class size of up to 8 - 10 participants per session • Multifaceted (deals with many life components), multimodal (uses many learning styles) and integrated, all elements' linkages are established • Designed to accommodate non-motivated participants with negative attitudes • Based on adult learning principles • Applicable at the same time as other counselling interventions (substance abuse, marital, etc.) • Supportive of all other interventions offered by the organization Benefits to Participants • Employment and empowerment through more control over their own lives • Life holds more potential and hope • A new beginning • A job, an income, a future Employment Management Professionals Inc 470 Dovercourt Road Toronto, Ontario, M6H 2W4 Tel: (416) 538-3791 Fax: (416) 538-5786 Email: info@employmentoutcomes.com www.employmentoutcomes.com