Workforce Innovations: CONNECT! Partner

CONNECT! Partner

Project HIRED

• Project HIRED’s services for business

• Project HIRED’s services for job seekers

Project HIRED’s mission is to help individuals with disabilities gain competitive employment and advance their careers—through partnerships with industry. Founded in 1978, Project HIRED offers outreach, employment training, job placement, employer education, and advocacy.

A nonprofit organization, Project HIRED is funded by federal grants, corporate and individual donations, and earned income from its social business ventures: HIRED Temps and HIRED Teams. Ninety-one percent of total revenue is used to fund program services.

Project HIRED’s vision is to be a significant force for employment of people with disabilities, helping to empower them as individuals, and through employment, helping them to provide for their families and to engage more fully in all aspects of everyday life.

In 2004 Project HIRED enjoyed the following successes:

ü	637 job candidates with disabilities received employment services
ü	207 candidates were placed into direct or temporary employment
ü	254 candidates received job retention services
ü	60% of those placed in regular employment had a severe disability
ü	67% of those placed in regular employment had been unemployed for at least six months

Despite Project HIRED’s success, the need for such an agency continues, as people with disabilities are the single largest minority group in the country. Disability is a normal part of life experienced by a significant percentage of the population, particularly as we get older. Currently, one-third of American families include at least one member with a disability.

In Silicon Valley, the number of people in the labor force between the ages of 21 and 64 with disabilities is 198,500. A population-specific unemployment rate of 59 percent means that there are nearly 120,000 potential members of the regional workforce who are willing and able to work but are instead sitting on the economic sidelines.

Roadblocks to Success

In securing employment for individuals with disabilities, Project HIRED must often dispel myths prevalent in the business community. First, not all disabilities are visible. Hidden disabilities include chronic illness, diabetes, back injuries, learning disabilities, wrist injuries/carpal tunnel, and arthritis.

Another inaccuracy that Project HIRED seeks to dispel is that many businesses think they will have to make special concessions for an individual with a disability and that the accommodations needed will be expensive. The facts tell a different story.

ü	Project HIRED clients must meet the same performance expectations and are subject to the same disciplinary actions as any employee.
ü	Project HIRED will not send anyone out who is not qualified or cannot keep up with the pace of the assignment.
ü	In regard to medical coverage, the Americans with Disabilities Act requires only that the company offer a person with a disability the same access to existing coverage that is offered to all other employees–no more, no less. Most disabilities do not require frequent ongoing doctor visits.
ü	Many employees with disabilities need no special accommodation at all. Of accommodations needed, more than half cost less than $50, most of which are free.
ü	Project HIRED, along with the Job Accommodation Network and other agencies, can assist businesses in identifying low-cost or no-cost accommodation alternatives.

Ensuring Appropriate Referrals

Project HIRED staff thoroughly screen all job applicants before referring them out to companies. According to Project HIRED CEO George Archambeau, what sets his agency apart is the quality of its job applicants.

“Many of the people we represent have prior work experience and a wide range of skills,” Archambeau says, noting that Project HIRED candidates are able and motivated to go to work, have been assessed according to their skill levels and career interests, and where appropriate, have undergone a background check.

“Our success is based upon our ability to make appropriate matches according to the skill levels of our job seekers and the requirements for the particular job,” Archambeau says.

Valued Participation

When asked what Project HIRED needs most, Archambeau says that donations are important, of course, and corporate-sponsored training is vitally needed, but more than anything, “we need businesses to take a proactive approach to recruiting people with disabilities.” This can be done by partnering with organizations such as Project HIRED to augment typical direct and contract hiring strategies.

“People with disabilities can and want to work,” Archambeau says. “All they ask is that employers give them an equal opportunity to compete. Families, businesses and the community all benefit when everyone has the opportunity to actively participate in the local economy through employment.”

Project HIRED is located in Santa Clara’s Franklin Square, on Monroe Street, between Homestead Road and Benton Street. To contact Project HIRED, call (408) 557-0880 or visit them online at www.projecthired.org.

Services for the Business Community:

ü	HIRED Temps: full-service diversified staffing solutions at competitive rates, with. specializations in technical, administrative, finance, marketing, biotechnical, graphic arts, and other highly skilled fields
ü	Recruitment
ü	Screening
ü	Training
ü	Reasonable employee accommodations at no cost to the employer
ü	No conversion fee (companies can hire candidates on a "trial" basis before they convert to regular full-time employees)
ü	Disability etiquette workshops for human resource staff and hiring managers
ü	Hot Candidates List: profiles of clients on the organization's Web site
ü	Candidate Video Profiles: candidatesdescribing their skills and talents

Services for Job Seekers:

ü	Individual job-search counseling
ü	Job-search skills workshops
ü	Networking and support groups
ü	Temporary and regular job placement
ü	Computer resource center and training
ü	Mentoring program
ü	Hot Candidates List: client profiles on Project HIRED's Web site
ü	Candidate Video Profiles: videos of clients describing their skills available online
ü	Training
ü	Health insurance
ü	Paid holidays