Need someone to do small duties, but can’t find a hire? Here is a win-win solution

Are there small tasks that aren’t getting done and start to pile up at your business?

Or, is one of your employees in a higher-level position taking on these duties when their time could be better spent doing the tasks associated with that position?

You are not alone. Many businesses in the community are struggling to find employees that want to work and are willing to take on the smaller, less difficult duties that need to be completed.

Pathways Abilities Society has a win-win solution. It’s called Customized or Integrated Employment Opportunities (ICO).

Representatives from Pathways Abilities Society work with a business to identify tasks that need to be completed and create a customized job description that can be fulfilled by an individual with diverse abilities.

Not only do you get to be an inclusive workplace (which looks great on a business), but you get to increase efficiency at your business by assigning the smaller tasks to a diverse individual who is capable, eager and dedicated to doing a good job, and keeping your employees busy with the work they are qualified to do.

“There is a lot of value in hiring someone who maybe can’t do a full job description, but they can take one, two, three, four tasks and get those done consecutively. They become professionals at whatever those tasks are,” says Bonnie Fraser, the Employment Manager at Pathways Abilities Society.

Individuals with diverse abilities work at businesses doing smaller tasks such as shredding, filing, cleaning up or organizing. For example, the person may get paid a wage closer to the duties associated with those tasks whereas the other employees that were doing the job were paid a higher rate because they hold a higher-level position. This frees them up to be doing what they were hired to do!

Fraser manages the ICO program and vets diverse individuals to find the right employee to fit the job description and stays connected to the business and employee to provide support services as needed.

Pathways Abilities Society is partnered with businesses such as Colombia Bottle Depot, Okanagan College and the University of British Columbia Okanagan, as well as many others.

Interested in learning more? Visit Pathways Abilities Society online or reach out to Bonnie Fraser at em@pathwayskelowna.ca.