Helping disadvantaged and unemployed people into the workplace
World of Work is a program designed to help highly disadvantaged and long-term unemployed people into full-time work by placing them with a full-time mentor and trainer for 13 weeks. During this time, Unilever provides them with paid work and training. They learn skills that will help them find jobs and keep them. Participants are paid a real wage and are expected to work the same hours and follow the same rules and guidelines as regular employees. The roles the participants take on are varied, from forklift driving and warehouse management to materials and production planning. They have also taken roles in HR and consumer relations.
The role of the mentor and trainer is to:
- Teach the participant transferable job skills
- Organise mock interviews to help participants practice at answering questions and bolstering their self-confidence
- Show participants how to go about finding work
- Show participants how to sell themselves in an interview.
Unilever partners with various Job Network Providers (usually not-for-profit) including WorkVentures, Workways and Mission Australia to assist in the running of this program. The program is currently in its third year and has a success rate of more than 80%.
Unilever particularly seeks to help people who face social problems and is looking into expanding the program into an apprenticeship scheme. Unilever is continually evaluating the program’s progress to look for new ways to redress unemployment in our community.
