Employment Support
Employment Support
Employment and support for Town Campers to enter the workforce is a key priority for Town Campers. We provide job seekers with upskilling and training opportunities, language literacy and numeracy programs, as well as work for the dole activities. The program also includes effective employment mentoring, which is helping job seekers gain and retain employment.
Our program is place-based and so activities are tailored to the needs of each community and interests of the job seekers and local industry. This helps to give Town Campers more control over the delivery of the employment support programs, while job seekers are developing soft skills and greater self confidence to better prepare for the workforce.
We provide key services such as:
- Engagement with employers and other services and organisations;
- Economic development support;
- Support for jobseekers with a disability;
- General services;
- Case management;
- Compliance;
- Remote employment; and
- Use of the Employment Assistance Fund.
- We are led and governed by Aboriginal people;
- Employment services are amongst many services that we operate in an integrated manner to support the overall wellbeing and safety of the Town Campers;
- We focus on jobseekers and their wellbeing, emphasising active case management;
- We are motivated by individual’s stories and needs;
- We support Aboriginal people from different locations, including in prison before people are released.
Our employment programs are unique – we can provide some jobseekers with the chance to have a taste of roles within Tangentyere. This means great practice for the workforce in a safe and reassuring cultural fit. The Town Camps are considered remote for activities such as employment services. This is an important categorisation, as they are culturally remote from the services in town, and there is a constant flow of people to and from the remote communities.
These program are strong because:
- We are led and governed by Aboriginal people
- Employment services are amongst many services that we operate in an integrated manner to support the overall wellbeing and safety of the Town Campers;
- We focus on jobseekers and their wellbeing, emphasising active case management;
- We are motivated by individual’s stories and needs;
- We support Aboriginal people from different locations, including in prison before people are released.
Our current employment programs are:
Community Development Program
The Community Development Program (CDP) delivers Work For the Dole (WFD) activities to prepare job seekers for work readiness and employment opportunities, identifying and addressing barriers to employment whilst contributing to their communities through a range of flexible activities. Activities may be compulsory for many people receiving government entitlements.
Our activities and support are customised to the needs and wants of the local community, including the local social and labour market. We have expert knowledge of our region and can tailor our services to the local employment opportunities. We are also a leading culturally safe provider and can balance the CDP requirements of the Federal Government.
Our service footprint covers all Alice Springs Town Camps, Amoonguna community and eleven remote outstations north of Alice Springs.
To support job seekers towards job readiness we provide:
- Transport to and from activities and CDP appointments;
- Drivers licence training and assistance;
- Police Checks and Ochre card applications;
- Organising and coordinating work skills training with external providers;
- Literacy and Numeracy (LLN);
- Activities that build work like skills; and
- Lunch daily to CDP activity participants.
Men and women can participate in many activities including:
YOUTH FOCUSED ACTIVITIES
Jobseekers aged 16-24 years
Brown Street Digital Media
MEN'S ACTIVITIES
- Nursery – Horticulture
- Men’s Shed – Building industry
- Amoonguna Men’s Shed - Building industry
WOMEN'S ACTIVITIES
- St Mary’s Ladies Art and Craft
- Amoonguna Ladies Art and Craft
Our activities produce quality hand made products. We regularly host popup shops around Alice Springs as an opportunity for participants to promote their products for retail sale to the local community and earn an income. Recently our Men’s shed was commissioned to produce custom outdoor furniture for a local business and our Nursery has just begun producing handmade leather works which will likely lead to retail opportunities.
As well as delivering CDP WFD activities the CDP program is also an Employment Service Provider with Employment targets to achieve each 6-month period. Dedicated Employment and Retention staff supported by the broader TES team, work with jobseekers to identify suitable employment and/or training opportunities that can lead to a participant securing employment in their chosen field.
The Employment and Retention team also build relationships with the mainstream Employer by providing them with information on Employer incentives and informing them of the support that TES can provide the individual jobseeker as they navigate through the application into employment path.
Time to Work Employment Service (TWES)
Our Time to Work Employment Service (TWES) is a voluntary, pre-release prison employment services for Aboriginal people at the Alice Springs Corrections Centre. If eligible, this program assists to set up employment and training opportunities, ready for when people are released.
Prior to release, we help create a transition plan, which:
- Includes all relevant job-related information about the job seeker;
- Provides a plan to address any barriers to employment that a post release job seeker may have; and
- Details a plan for employment after the job seeker is released.
The transition plan is provided to the relevant CDP or Employment service that the job seeker will be returning to once released. Since we offer a range of employment support services, many people can be referred to us once released, ensuring uninterrupted, culturally sensitive support, to improve employment opportunities.
It is of real benefit to community that Tangentyere is able to provide this service. It means we can support people when released, so they do not fall between the cracks, and seamlessly transition into our existing employment support services.