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DISABILITY EMPLOYMENT FAQs

ECHO’s Disability Employment Service Top

At ECHO, we help job seekers with disabilities and disadvantage find, obtain and maintain employment. With our specialised knowledge and expertise, we can help you choose and achieve employment in a number of industries and professions you may not have thought possible.

Types of Disabilities (examples only):

Physical

  • Back injuries
  • Heart problems
  • Arthritis
  • Amputees
  • Paraplegics

Psychiatric

  • Schizophrenia
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Bi Polar/Manic Depression

Intellectual

  • Learning difficulties

Neurological

  • Epilepsy
  • Acquired Brain Injury(ABI)

Ongoing Illnesses

  • Chronic Fatigue
  • Irritable Bowel Syndrome
  • HIV/Hepatitis C
  • Haemophilia/Von Willebrands disease

Sensory

  • Hearing
  • Sight

Aspergers/Autism/ADD/ADHD

Alcoholism/Drug Addiction

Literacy

 

What we can do for you Top

If you decide you want to apply to join ECHO’s Disability Employment Service, you will be required to fill out an application form (assistance is available if needed) and then attend an initial interview.

Your Employment Consultant will:

  • Put together a resumé for you or update the one you have
  • Help you write application letters for any jobs you want to apply for
  • Make regular times to meet with you to discuss your progress, any problems you might be having, and how your job search efforts are going
  • Help you with your job searching via Job Club sessions or on an individual basis
  • Provide transport to interviews and support in the interview if required
  • Monitor your performance once you start a new job and provide on-going support, training and re-training if needed.

Your Employment Consultant will also carry out ‘marketing’ for suitable jobs on your behalf. This may involve your consultant calling an employer you are interested in working for, talking to an employer on your behalf, or following up any leads you may have sourced yourself.

ECHO will make sure that you will work under the correct terms and conditions of an Award, and that your work site is free from risk of personal injury. We work with your employer, as do you, to make sure you are happy with your conditions, such as your pay, your holiday and the hours you work each week. When ECHO places you in a job we will continue to support you so that you keep the job. Together we agree how much help you need and get.

Please read the criteria for Joining ECHO, and if you feel that we are the sort of service you are looking for, simply fill out the 'Registration of Interest' form or contact us through the contact details listed. One of our consultants will be in touch with you within a couple of days.

Why join ECHO Top

  • Everyone has the right to work
  • ECHO will help you get a job, train you and continue to support you so that you can get the skills required for the job
  • We will make sure that you get paid the right money for your job
  • If you need to gain skills to get a job, ECHO will help you apply for a suitable course

Criteria for joining ECHO Top

Centrelink states that you must meet the following criteria to be eligible to join ECHO Australia’s Disability Employment Service. (Please note that meeting these criteria does not guarantee you will be accepted – eg: if there are no current vacancies)

You must:

  • Be aged between 15 – 65
  • Have access to transport and with minimal help be able to travel to and from workplaces
  • Be prepared to work more than eight hours per week
  • Need support to obtain and maintain employment
  • Be willing to work and accept suitable job opportunities if they are offered to you
  • Be receiving appropriate support for any condition you may have (eg: doctor, psychiatrist, mental health case manager)
  • Be living in stable accommodation

We also ask that our participants:

  • Be willing to keep in contact on a regular basis with their Employment Consultant (whether by phone, or by attending regular sessions)
  • Be contactable on short notice (for interview and employment vacancy purposes)
  • Be willing to travel a reasonable distance from where they live to find work
  • Be realistic and flexible in the types of work they are willing to consider
  • Be willing to accept guidance and professional advice from their Employment Consultant

Career Development Top

At ECHO, we run a Career Development Course that is available to all job seekers. The course covers four main areas:

  • Where to look for work
  • How to research the qualifications and training needed for particular jobs
  • The importance of Resumé and Application Letters
  • How to prepare for interviews

The course is designed to build your confidence as a job seeker and to identify the skills and experience you have to offer employers. Its aim is to help you realise the opportunities that are available and to discover different ways of finding employment.

After completing the course, you will receive a Certificate of Achievement which is great to include in your resumé.

ECHO's Job Kiosk Top

ECHO’s Job Kiosk is a place where you may visit during business hours, without having to make an appointment. The idea behind our Job Kiosk is that you can come in and use our facilities to look for work and everything you need will be right there. Our Job Kiosk includes:

  • Computers for you to type resumé and application letters.
  • Internet access to job search websites so you can use the Internet to look for work. (Internet access must be booked at reception).
  • A fax machine so that you can fax your resumé to employers. You can also use the machine to have faxes sent to you (please let your employment consultant know so they can put it aside until you can collect it).
  • A phone for you to use to call employers about jobs.
  • Photocopier facilities for you to copy your resumé or job descriptions (just ask at reception and they will copy anything you need).
  • All the current local newspapers, as well as relevant copies of The Age and The Herald Sun, so you can look through the employment sections for work.
  • A jobs board that will have a list of all the current vacancies ECHO Australia has (this board will be continually updated as new jobs come in).
  • A coffee bar you so can help yourself to a nice warm drink while you’re looking for work.

ECHO'S JOB KIOSK IS OPEN MONDAY TO FRIDAY, 9:00 AM TO 5:00 PM

Links to disability-related websites Top

Links to employment-related websites Top

Registration of Interest Top

Please complete the form below to register your interest in joining ECHO's Disability Employment Service and one of our consultants will be in contact with you within the next few days.

Registration of Interest Form

Disability Service Standards Top

Standard 1: Service Access
Each person with a disability who is seeking a service has access to a service on the basis of relative need and available resources.

This means: ECHO Australia will provide a fair and equitable service for people with disabilities.

Standard 2: Individual Needs
Each person with a disability receives a service which is designed to meet, in the least restrictive way, his or her individual needs and personal goals.

This means: ECHO Australia will provide you with a service that is designed to help you reach your individual employment goals.

Standard 3: Decision Making and Choice
Each person with a disability has the opportunity to participate as fully as possible in making decisions about the events and activities of his or her daily life in relation to the service he or she receives.

This means: ECHO Australia will provide you with the opportunity to participate in any decisions made about the individual service you receive.

Standard 4: Privacy, Dignity and Confidentiality
Each consumer’s right to privacy, dignity and confidentiality in all aspects of his or her life is recognised and respected.

This means: ECHO Australia will not disclose any personal information about you to third parties without your informed consent.

Standard 5: Participation and Integration
Each person with a disability is supported and encouraged to participate and be involved in the community.

This means: ECHO Australia will help you get out into the local community through providing employment opportunities.

Standard 6: Valued Status
Each person with a disability has the opportunity to develop and maintain skills and to participate in activities that enable him or her to achieve valued roles in the community.

This means: ECHO Australia will encourage you and actively promote you and your skills to employers in the local community.

Standard 7: Complaints and Disputes
Each consumer is encouraged to raise and have resolved without fear of retribution, any complaints or disputes he or she may have regarding the service provider or the service.

This means: ECHO Australia will listen to any complaints you may have and try to resolve any problems you are having with our service or staff.

Standard 8: Service Management
Each service provider adopts quality management systems and practices which optimise outcomes for consumers.

This means: ECHO Australia will put into place practices and policies that ensure you receive a high quality service.

Standard 9: Employment Conditions
Each person with a disability enjoys working condition comparable to those of the general workforce.

This means: ECHO Australia will make sure you are receiving wages and benefits similar to those received by other people in your workplace.

Standard 10: Consumer Training and Support
The employment opportunities of each person with a disability are optimised by effective and relevant training and support.

This means: ECHO Australia will help provide access to training and support that is relevant to your employment goals.

Standard 11: Employment Skills Development
Each person employed to deliver services to a person with a disability has relevant skills and competencies.

This means: ECHO Australia will ensure that staff have the relevant skills and training needed to assist you in meeting your goals.

Standard 12: Protection of Human Rights and Freedom from Abuse
The service provider acts to prevent abuse and neglect and to uphold the legal and human rights of service recipients.

This means: ECHO Australia will take all the necessary steps to ensure that you are not subjected to abuse or neglect in the workplace.

DES Diability Standards, Complaints & Service Standards 2010-2012 Handbook

DES Standards 2010-2012 Handbook

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