今年,前线 MassHire 职业中心 staff received training on addiction recovery and trauma-informed approach to mental health to better understand the barriers that some customers are facing as they look for jobs in a tight labor market.
With low unemployment and a shrinking workforce, those who are still looking for work face some of the greatest challenges to obtaining and keeping a job. Working with these job seekers takes more time and a more sophisticated understanding of what they are going through to connect them with jobs that will support their health and recovery. At the same time, job developers need support in communicating with businesses about these workers’ needs and matching these job seekers with employers who understand and offer a supportive work environment.
Commonwealth Corporation partnered with the MassHire 职业服务部 在过去的春季和秋季协调和提供培训。第一次培训,成瘾、康复和可用资源概述,在全州五个地点举行。来自该州的主持人 Benjamin Cluff 公共卫生部物质使用和成瘾服务局 (BSAS), offered his expertise on how symptoms and signs of addiction manifest in people and the stages and experience of recovery.
Participants in the training found Cluff’s expertise and the information shared extremely helpful in increasing their understanding of addiction and recovery. Cluff shared resources that are available for those suffering from addiction and for family and those who care for them; these were found to be particularly useful for participants. Most participants stated they would recommend this training to their colleagues. CommCorp is currently working with MassHire and BSAS on a follow-up to this training, focusing on how to apply this information in day-to-day career center work.
The second training, Transforming Services through a Trauma-Informed Approach, was facilitated by the 中央 MA 恢复学习社区 KIVA 中心. This training was also held in five locations across the state. This training introduced the relationship between trauma and mental health struggles. The facilitators explored what a trauma-informed approach is, why it is important, and how it relates to career center staffs’ work with customers who may have mental health struggles.
In many cases, participants found that they were already implementing a trauma-informed approach in their work with job seekers. The training also helped participants consider how the environment in which they meet with job seekers can be made more comfortable for those with histories of trauma. Many participants reported that their level of understanding what trauma is and how it can impact someone’s life increased through this training. Most participants stated that they would recommend this training to their colleagues, as well.
CommCorp is currently working with MassHire on additional training for career center staff in 2020. As associate director of the 马萨诸塞州劳动力协会 (MWA),我看到这种伙伴关系对该州的劳动力系统有多么富有成效,MWA 期待与 CommCorp 和 MassHire 合作,以确保为我们的会员继续进行及时和深入的培训。