Summer Bulletin is Here – Focus on Serving Rural Communities
July 15, 2011Innovative New Webinar Series: Positive Psychology for Career Practitioners
July 28, 2011A CERIC-funded research project will map the growing role of career practitioners in supporting people with mental health challenges who want to move into the workforce. Job-seekers are increasingly disclosing their experience with mental illness and employment counsellors report feeling handcuffed by a lack of knowledge and resources.
Led by the Nova Scotia Career Development Association (NSCDA) in collaboration with Neasa Martin & Associates, the project will engage and educate career counsellors, educators and policy planners to share best practices, improve career counselling access and service delivery for people living with mental health issues. The learning from this project is expected to be relevant to developing a national program.
“There is a definite gap between the needs of clients with mental health conditions and the comfort level of career practitioners who are trying to move their clients into the workforce,” says Nancy Dube, Chair of the CERIC Board of Directors and General Manager of the YMCA Sudbury. “This research will provide valuable guidance to career practitioners to better understand and manage these issues.”
Employment is broadly recognized as an important cornerstone of social inclusion providing identity, purpose, meaning, social connections and the financial means necessary to participate in the community. People with mental health challenges face the highest unemployment rate of any disability group and for many work remains an illusive goal.
“Career practitioners can play a critical gate-keeping role in helping people gain or reclaim a foothold in the world of work, and in accessing education and training programs,” says Neasa Martin, Consultant at Neasa Martin & Associates. “When properly resourced, career practitioners can become powerful agents of change.”
Employment success requires addressing the stigma those with mental illness experience in accessing the services they need to enter or retain their foothold in the workforce, or return to employment after a leave of absence, career experts say. Although people want to work, discrimination and limiting public policies contribute to their exclusion from the workforce.
Meanwhile, governments are beginning to recognize the importance of improving employment access for marginalized groups to meet workforce needs.
