The past few months have blown Thandi’s mind. Our Employment Engagement Officer has quickly become quite an expert in her field in the short time since she joined us late last year.
In recent weeks, Thandi has been on a journey with one of our job seekers, Tammy. Thandi advertised a local job vacancy with Westpac and Tammy was excited to apply for the role. The two arranged to meet to update Tammy’s resume and complete the online portal application.
Anyone who has completed questionnaires and uploaded documents into an employment portal knows how tedious and time consuming this can be! – The process took both of them an hour and a half.
The position required Tammy to have double doses of the COVID vaccine. Tammy was happy to get the vaccine but did not have her first dose yet. So, Thandi contacted all the clinics, hospitals, and pharmacies in Tom Price and Paraburdoo to see when Tammy could get in to receive her vaccination.
Thandi’s efforts paid off as Tammy was able to get a booking! Thandi and Tammy were then able to notify the employer that Tammy has received her first dose, and Tammy contacted Thandi to let her know that her job interview was arranged for the next day.
Thandi offered Tammy the use of our computers to complete her video job interview. Tammy came into the AAC office early so Thandi and herself could prepare for the interview together, do a few mock interviews and ensure that all the links for the interview were working.
Tammy looked so professional when she walked through the door. There was no doubt in our minds that she would make an amazing Bank Teller – And as we suspected, the interview went great!
The employer then explained that they would do the necessary reference checks with past employers. For a large part of her adulthood, Tammy has been a stay-at-home mum with her children. She re-entered the workforce in 2020 when she commenced a Sales Assistant position. This means that she had one reference, but her potential employer needed two.
What worked in Tammy’s favour was that she had been fantastic at attending her activity at AAC. The best part is that the activity that she chose was related to retail, and as such we could have a team member complete her reference.
Once the reference checks had been completed, Tammy returned to the office to let Thandi know that she has been successful in obtaining the job!!
There were incredibly loud WHOOOO HOOOs in the office, as we celebrated with her. Tammy’s start date will be set once she has obtained her second vaccination against COVID. She is so excited and so are we.
Since there are no clothing stores in Tom Price, Tammy will now sit at the computer with Thandi once again to shop for some work clothes online. She’s bound to make a great impression in her new clothes.
Our journey with Tammy has not ended with her commencing her new job – In fact, we are just getting started. She will be mentored and supported by the AAC team over the next 6 months. Tammy will have someone to talk to you if anything seems too complicated for her, or a helping hand if she discovers that she needs a new course that she can’t yet afford.
As Tammy settles in at her new role, she already knows that there is a team at AAC ready to help whenever she needs it. Ready to help her in her employment journey, even when she doesn’t need it. That’s peace of mind.
It has been heartwarming to watch Thandi and Tammy go through this journey together – from start to finish Thandi has been there to Support Tammy, and Tammy has been able to share her hard work and dedication with her mentor.
Well done to both Tammy and Thandi!