Jobmatters Navan supports national Job Shadow Day

Seven jobseekers, supported by Jobmatters, recently took part in the job shadow initiative and were based with a variety of employers in County Meath. One morning last week was spent by the participants shadowing staff and familiarising themselves with the daily running of the organisations involved, which included An Garda Siochana Civilian Directorate's HR headquarters at Johnstown, the Meath Chronicle, Spicer's Bakery, Beaufort College, Le Cheile Childcare Facility, Petmania and Halfords. On Job Shadow Day, hundreds of individuals with disabilities throughout Ireland were afforded the unique opportunity to shadow a workplace employee as they went through a normal working day in hundreds of employment locations across the country. Jobmatters Ltd is the Meath branch of the Supported Employment Programme, funded by Fás and the NDP, and co-ordinates the needs of employers with the abilities of jobseekers. The job shadow initiative is organised by the Irish Association Of Supported Employment (IASE), a national organisation that promotes employment rights and access for all individuals with a disability in Ireland. The IASE's patron is Sean Gallagher of 'Dragon's Den' who himself has a visual impairment. Sean was recently appointed to the new board of Fás having supported and advocated on behalf of people with disabilities for many years.  The aim of the initiative is to encourage employers to consider people with disabilities when they are recruiting. Local companies open their doors to people with disabilities so they can job shadow a company mentor for a day while that person goes about their work. The benefits to the jobseekers include exposure to work settings, which affords them the opportunity to learn more about the job requirements and employer expectations, thereby gaining an awareness of the skills and education required to compete, develop and succeed in the workplace. In Navan, Peter Geraghty and Emmanuel James meet with Adrienne McGill and Gardai on duty at the local Garda station. Grace Nolan met with sales manager Mary McGuigan at the Meath Chronicle where she observed the day-to-day running of a busy newspaper. Stephanie McMahon was warmly welcomed as she shadowed the childcare team at Le Cheile, Simonstown. Nikita Sugrue returned to her former school, Beaufort College, where she spent the day with the special needs team. Jenny enjoyed their morning in the administration office at Spicer's Bakery, while Karl gained a lot from his time spent at Halfords. Sheila Comiskey, co-ordinator of Jobmatters Supported Employment, said: "This has been a great success for those who have participated today, both the employers and the jobseekers. It has given both parties the opportunity to have a snapshot of the others' working life. I really would like to thank everyone, employers, jobseekers and my own dedicated team of employment facilitators, Assumpta Duffy, Roisin O'Hagan and Pat Hawes, who have supported the 2010 Job Shadow Initiative and made this day happen. Local employers became more aware of the challenges that our jobseekers face in finding jobs in today's environment and the valuable contribution they can make to their workforce."