Pena tintite cath ret High degree of satisfaction com DUCATION AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT# donee CUCM A NEWS photo Neii Lucente . PETER RUSSELL helps to speed things i for cashier Kathy Abbott by bagging groceries ~~ one of his many duties as a Safeway service cierk. Clients advance within placement companies rom page 26 “California Shutter. Company, who “+ has. two mentally handicapped - people on the payroll. » Steve Farr has been withthe company for a year-and-a-half --vand Ken Page joined eight . months ‘ago. When ‘he began, _ Farr'did rotoring and san ing. and within a week of being hired he knew what to do, Said ~ McMahones eye - «One thing Farr does, said: “McMahon, js make shutter lou- - _,vres by running pieces of wood * through.a finishing machine that’ “rounds the édges.:“Somebody | sets.up the machine and he runs. the pieces through it.” Ken Page works in the paint department sanding shutters to prepare them for-painting. in” addition .he does other finishing work,’such as.rounding sharp edges and filling knots in the wood. McMahon came to hire Farr and Page as a direct result of NSES’s constant marketing. “It was just a flukey day riding ’ the exercise bike at the gym,” he recalled. “Basically | was talking - to somebody beside me, and she told me whiat she did.” McMahon said he's happy : with Farr and Page not onl because they do good work but because of their commitment. ’ Much of the work at California Shutters is repetitive, which - means a high staff turnover. “One of the problems with finding labor is the willingness of peopfe to stay with you. We're doing each other good.” Sometimes an employer has to _be shown that Using NSES makes good business sense. Crook cre- ates positions by pointing out to : employers that if each employee spent a lot of time at the photo- copier, it would make sense to hire someone to do it for every- 6ne for $7 per hour. Because NSES workers are treated and paid tike anyone else, they can also be laid off. “Ws a reality of the business world: things change, times change, peaple lase their jobs,” said Crook. “They come back.” Both Farr and Page had held other jobs. In Page’s case, he worked for Ballard Battery .. Systems for two years until mili- tary cutbacks caused him to be laid off. “No contracts — no jobs,” said Page matter-of-factiy. Even though all jebs are entry- level, NSES clients can go as far in a company as their abilities will allow them. . McMahon said some of them advance to a middle position and are content there. “Sometimes declication is far better than train- ing some 16-year-olds,” he said. \ career at B.C.Hydro Think about it. in "Electrician Marketing Apprenticeships Meter Reader f Environmental * ~~ : «ED = @ Computer Sciences Finance & Administration * These are some of the career options at B.C Hydro. For information on these careers or summer, part time and full time job opportunities . at Hydro, come by and talk to us at the Career Day Fair, March 10, 1994 between | .2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. at Sutherland School or call 983-8211. To find out current job vacancies call our job line at (604) 528-3382. Ghi dr Ba9 EXE SIRLOIN es from labor hen asked if he liked his job, Peter Russell paused, smiled, and appeared to be reacly to give a qualified “yes,” but before he could answer, his counsellor from the North Shore Employment Services, Jacqui Nothstein, nudged him in a mock rebuke. “What is this? You love your job!” “Yeah, | like it,” said Russell with slight smirk. “The reason | like it is because every day is dif- ferent — you don’t know what to expect. Last week, a customer asked me if anyone could speak Japanese.” : Russell’s job as a service clerk at the 13th and Lonsclale Safeway is a coup for NSES. His hirin five months ago marked the First time a NSES client had landed a union job. ‘The particulars were worked out between NSES and Safeway’s Vancouver head office, said store manager Mike Norton. It was hard at first for some people to get used to Russell, said front-end store manager Karen Bell, but now he is accept- ed as any regular employee. The first thing Russell does after coming to work is Gon a Safeway coat and go out to col- lect the shopping carts from the parking lots, which includes, he says, “Boing to the bus stops to round up the strays.” After the carts, he comes inside to pather up loose red ETSI IETS Yara RACE P IER contribution , February 25, 1994 - Nonhn Shore News - 27 PACU PCAC RR f FETE Ta 7 By Greg Felton: ED ORPEATES SONY METRE shopping baskets and to pay pop bottle refunds, “He also reminds people there is a limit of 24 per day,” said Nothstein, who was on-site fora week conducting a follow-up. When the refunds are slow, Russell bags groceries and. answers customers’ questions, which isthe part of his job he said he enjoys.the most. : Before Safeway, Russell worked at a number of temporary and relief jobs, and also did a stint with the North Shore News. “twas there for two-and-a-half years delivering Sunday papers to apartments and businesses,” said Russel]. He left the News when he started al Safeway. He said the money’s better. Russell is also political active on behalf of mentally handicapped people.He sits on the board of the North Shore Association for the Mentally Handicapped (NSAMH), and is a- member of the Vocational Services Committee and the North Shore Disabled Committee. He also writes arti-.'' cles for the NSAMH newsletter. . Nothstein said she would like to see all mentally handicapped people out of institutions and doing some kind of work. For his part, Russell has his | . sights set ona long-term career - ; with Safeway. “I’d like to have some authority,” he said. Are you an energetic person? - ~ Deo you enjoy . working with different kinds of people? . The investment industry, - is looking for ambitious individuals ’ to begin exciting careers in: ~ Financial Planning Investment Banking Sales Research Administration Visit the - INVESTMENT DEALERS ASSOCIATION & CANADIAN SECURITIES INSTITUTE table at the Career Fair on March 10th at Sutherland School and ask us about career opportunities in this rapidly growing industry. Or call us at 683-1338.