Disability Friendly Employers are Looking for You to Fill Their Openings!



Employers are searching for you,
are you ready for them?

by Megan Elliott, Social Media Developer

Slowly but surely, we’re starting to see national chains pick up on the fact that there are plenty of people out there who are willing and want to work, and have a skill set that makes them perfect for their businesses. These people are our clients, our Ticket Holders, the people with disabilities (PWD), and the value is showing every time one of you gets employed!

Walgreens was one of the earliest businesses who recognized the value of hiring PWD, and has launched an educational initiative to help other businesses recognize opportunities to hire PWD. Walgreens launched a pilot program in Anderson, S.C., which just so happens to be in the same state that ERS operates in, that hired PWD to sort bulk shipments from their suppliers into the stock shipment orders from their stores.

Now, Lowe’s home improvement stores are jumping on board and learning from Walgreens on how to launch their own program for hiring PWD, and they’re not the only ones. OfficeMax, an office supply retail store chain, has won awards for their inclusion efforts from a national association of state vocational rehabilitation agencies. And more can be found here, on DisabilityInc’s list of top 50 companies for diversity.

So what does this mean for Ticket Holders, people who want to work and want to find the jobs out there? Well, make sure that you add your resume to the databases of www.jobaccess.org or www.gettinghired.com. We can help you with that if you are uncomfortable doing it yourself. Bookmark the career pages of the companies you want to work for, and check those postings regularly for positions you think you are qualified to apply for, and then submit your resume!

Alternatively, you can send a prospecting letter to the human resources department head. Here’s a great guide for writing a prospecting letter that will get you noticed. Don’t know the name of the human resources head? Well, here’s how to find that name! Your letter will get noticed more readily if you use a name, rather than a generic “Dear Sir or Madam,” in your cover letter anyway. Just make sure to keep it professional and on-point as to how you’re the perfect person for a job that they don’t have open right now, but may in the future.

Don’t you feel better knowing that companies are searching for you to fill that position that they know only you can fill? Now it’s up to you to let them know that you’re ready to go to work! Make sure to call or e-mail us and let us know if there’s any way we can help you prepare your cover letter, resume, or fill out an application. That’s what we’re here for!

Functional Resumes - Making a Change

This is a functional resume template.
Feel free to use this to create your functional resume!

by Megan Elliott, Social Media Developer

Every job adds to your skills list, but not every job is a good fit for your resume.  If you have gaps in your work history, or you want to change your career path, then you might want to think about using a functional resume.  This format actually allows you to highlight your skills rather than your work history.

Let’s pretend that you want to apply to an insurance claims adjuster position with a local insurance agency.  You’ve worked as a grocery store stocker and as an administrative assistant for a realty agency.  What skills do you have from those two previous jobs that would be valued in the position that you’re applying for?  Look at the job description – there are skills they are looking for in applicants that could be used as keywords for your skills section (see our previous blog post for a definition of keywords).

Let’s try these: organizational skills, data management, and customer service.  You could write these into your resume and highlight how use used those skills during your previous jobs.

·         Organizational skills – Developed a new canned goods sorting process that increased my efficiency at stocking the shelves by 20%.  Produced a daily agency calendar specifically for the showing of listed properties that allowed agents to plan their day more effectively.

·         Data management – Able to take complex spreadsheets listing inventory and separate them by department and by shipped inventory.  Created weekly reports for real estate agents showing their listed properties, sorted from most shown properties to least shown properties, allowing them to become more effective with their time.

·         Customer service – Assisted customers to find products during stocking shifts.  Received existing and new customers with a smile; created a welcoming environment while the customer waited for their agent.

The key is to demonstrate how your skills were used in the workplace.  Feel free to use percentages and statistics that show how valuable those skills are, just make sure that they’re accurate percentages and statistics. You don’t want to lie on your resume! 

In the section after your skillset, list your work experience with the most recent employer listed first, going backwards in time.  Include any training classes or certifications you received here, because they’ll make sense in context of where you were working at the time.

The last thing to list is your education.  Generally speaking, this is why a functional format for a resume is a good one to use if you are an older worker and are looking for ways to downplay your age. 

Look at the template we’ve added as an image, and let us know if there’s a way we can help you make this resume shine!