New employment hope for vision impaired Australians
Vision Australia have teamed up with The Salvation Army to help young people in the blind and low vision community find meaningful work opportunities.
The two organisations signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) this month that will focus on reducing unemployment levels.
Vision Australia Chief Executive Officer Ron Hooton believes the new partnership will create new hope for those who have vision impairments.
“Unfortunately people with a disability, including those who are blind or have low vision, still face many challenges in gaining employment,” he says.
“The MOU will provide better connections between mainstream and specialist employment providers to enable tailored supports.”
The Memorandum of Understanding covers Disability Employment Services (DES), jobactive and Transition to Work and will take effect immediately.
Each year, The Salvation Army’s employment services assist 70,000 Australians to find employment through initiatives such as the Australian government’s jobactive, Transition to Work and NSW Government’s Smart, Skilled and Hired (youth employment) programs.
As part of this MOU, if someone who is blind or has low vision contacts The Salvation Army Employment Plus, they will be directed to connect with Vision Australia services.
“There are 380,000 Australians who are blind or have low vision and it is important that people are made aware of the support services that are available to them,” Mr Hooton says.
As The Salvation Army Employment Plus’ newest partner, Vision Australia has been invited to be part of a Disability Advisory Panel (DAP).
The DAP will be comprised of delegates from DES, Salvation Army and other disability services like the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
The panel will meet once per quarter to discuss key issues and challenges affecting the disability sector and find innovative ways to work together on key policy and service delivery issues.