GREAT Picture Guides Now Available





If you are looking for picture guides for common items used in food-related industries, look no further!  Caritas of Austin is sharing their picture guides with us and they are now posted on the RefugeeWorks website. 

They are translated into Arabic, Burmese, Nepali, and Spanish.  And they are simple, clear, and reproducible for free.  Enjoy! 

Leave a comment to let us know how you are using the translated guides.

Starting From Scratch: Refugees Rebuilding Lives in Baltimore

This was the title of a news story on NPR that I was interviewed for. As the economy struggles to regain strength so do refugees and millions of other Americans when looking for a job. What I am continually confounded by is there are jobs out there. I feel as though I keep trying to solve an equation that always equals zero. What I mean by this, is that there are jobs out there that need to be filled and most native born Americans do not want. Yet, a lot of companies are hesitant to hire refugees for the positions. So, at the end of the day they remain vacant.

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of taking a newly granted asylee to a job interview at a prestigious hotel in Baltimore. This amazing lady speaks four languages, has experience in the hospitality industry, and is willing to take any job in this hotel. If I was the hiring manager, I would be racing to hire this woman. She would be a great employee and would excel in her work. Is that not what all employers are looking for in a potential employee? Is that not what we all strive to do in our careers?

As the Democrats and the Republicans on Capital Hill continue to bicker, we all need to remember the open-mindedness of our grandparents when it came to work ethic and being grateful to have a job. And being grateful to have amazing people willing to take the jobs we have to offer. Thank goodness the new comers we serve still remember!

Listen to the interview here.

The information shared in this post is meant to serve as inspiration to other service providers in their fund raising efforts. This event is not only to raise monetary funds for Exodus, but more importantly, to continue spreading the word and educating the public about who refugees are and the issues that they face when coming to this country.

Exodus Refugee Presents: "Welcome to Shelbyville" Film Screening Fundraiser!

Exodus Refugee is pleased to present a film screening of "Welcome to Shelbyville", a documentary capturing the joys and challenges of refugee resettlement in rural America. Join us for this exciting night of film and discussion!

Date: Thursday, July 28th, 7PM, at the Indianapolis Museum of Art

Also featured before the film will be a collection of artwork created by refugees from our local community.

All proceeds will benefit the work of Exodus Refugee in welcoming and resettling refugees from Burma, Iraq, Iran, Eritrea, Somalia, and other nations. Refugees come to our country with only what they can carry. Exodus arranges housing, furnishings, food and clothing as well as other basic items to ensure that individuals and families have what they require to begin their new lives. Exodus relies on donations from individuals, groups, churches and foundations to provide the items necessary to meet the basic needs of refugee newcomers.

Join us for this exciting event to encounter the realities of refugee resettlement, and raise funds for the work of Exodus Refugee!

Please leave a comment if you have either seen this film or have questions about it. I will post a follow-up piece about how the event went, challenges, and successes! Please also visit our event on Facebook and at www.exodusrefugee.org

Short -Term Training Options

There can be a feeling of urgency to provide refugees with marketable skills in a short amount of time. Refugees have a seemingly small "window of time" in which to reach self-sufficiency. Public benefits are only available for a period of months, and while the resettlement agencies certainly do what they can, the financial assistance they can provide is not indefinite. Refugees unfortunately may find themselves hovering right above or below the poverty line, and without any useful job skills, how are they to support themselves and survive?

This is where short-term training options come into play. Whether it is a refresher course building on skills already acquired or teaching a new skill or trade, preparing refugees to enter the U.S. workforce must mean that service providers are offering real solutions. These trainings certainly do not even need to be extensive in order to be effective. Simple workplace skills such as answering phones and operating a cash register can prove to be more valuable than you may think. Utilizing community resources to provide these necessary skills to clients is critical. A popular training option being accessed by refugees in Indianapolis is CNA certification. With the health-care industry being a constant yet expanding source of employment, clients have more flexibility and options for job placements and career building.

Service providers: what short-term training options are offered to clients through your agencies? How do you go about deciding on topics as well as content? How and where do you refer clients for additional skills training in your communities?

Self-Sufficiency as the Key to Integration

Last Monday I had the opportunity to join a panel of experts from the United States and Europe at the Carnegie Endowment for Peace in Washington DC. Discussions were on a wide range of topics relating to issues around integration of refugees being resettled on both continents. Throughout the conversation, it became abundantly clear that employment is a key factor in integration. As a matter of fact, one senior U.S. official stated, " The United States does not focus on integration, we focus on self-sufficiency." In short, gaining employment leads to assimilation into one's community.

Refugee job developers should see their work as a very important tool in the resettlement process. In the United States, your work is your clients' first step out in their new world and their new beginning. Once employed, learning takes place. These new Americans begin to learn about life in the U.S. and the people who live in their communities. For their native-born co-workers, this is a chance for them to learn about the world and cultures well beyond our shores. Because of the U.S. resettlement program, world peace starts at home for many Americans who may otherwise not have the opportunity to meet people from other countries. When you think about it...your jobs transform communities and change the world for the better!

What are your thoughts about employment leading to integration? Was the U.S. official correct? How can we approve upon this concept?

-Jonathan

Learning from Non-Refugee Employment Programs

My job development efforts target all of Caritas clients, only approximately 1/3 of which are refugees. We help all kinds of people experiencing poverty. The populations face different barriers and sometimes there is overlap. Refugee Works is great, but I often wish for local job development resources with a different perspective. So, I’ve been trying to tap broader Caritas networks for a more localized, in-person support group.

The Texas Workforce Commission includes lots of great resources and I've found several like-minded colleagues in that system. They're different in every State, so you'll have to explore in your area. The social service network for ex-offenders has also been an innovative and active source of information. I recently attended an Offender Employment Specialist certification course that gave me lots of new contacts, resources and ideas. Goodwill Industries (read more below) is also a national leader in putting people to work.

Recently, I’ve encountered two especially useful resources for training and employmetn opportunities from our non-refugee networks that have benefitted my work with refugees, as well, so I wanted to share.

Goodwill Industries: Many of you are probably familiar with Goodwill. They offer so many great services, although they differ by location. Often the eligibility criteria for most of them includes some type of disability that serves as a barrier to employment. We’ve found that definition to be more expansive than you might imagine and some of our refugee clients have qualified to participate. The best resource for refugees has been employment in the retail stores, which do not have the same eligibility criteria. They are very supportive employers that emphasize training and advancement opportunities. All of their openings are listed on the national website http://www.goodwill.org/ We have also met with all of the hiring managers in the individual stores that are on bus lines. Some agreed to receive an email copy of the applications or a heads up that a qualified Caritas client has applied. Several refugees, including some with very low English language proficiency, were already working at Goodwill Stores, so we were able to provide examples of their success and references from other Goodwill store managers.

Transportation Workers Identification Credential (TWIC): This credential is a pilot program of the Maritime Transportation Safety Administration to ensure that anyone who might “pose a threat do not gain unescorted access to secure areas of the nation's maritime transportation system”. It is now required for dock workers, long shore workers, truck drivers and anyone who has unescorted access to secure areas or regulated maritime facilities like ports and vessels. It includes biometrics, digital photographs and an extensive background check. In addition to being required for certain types of jobs, it can give qualified refugees an extra edge. Asylees, refugees and Legal Permanent Residents are all eligible, but there are stringent documentation requirements. For example, a foreign passport AND I-94 are required. The website to find out more is http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/layers/twic/index.shtm. This doesn’t really apply in landlocked Austin, so I can’t provide any first-hand experience.

If anyone gains insight or has good experiences with either of these resources, it would be great to hear from you through this site.

Tell Me About Yourself: The Importance Of A Well-Done Resume!

Let's face it...today's job market is not what it used to be. Competition is still at an all-time high for any and every job. Previously "undesirable" positions and industries are still seeing huge volumes of potential candidates. Don't be surprised if you find yourself competing against a Master's level or Ph.D. for that entry level position that you thought nobody wanted! According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the national unemployment rate is hovering right around 9%, but to families who are unable to make ends meet, this number can feel arbitrary and all they really know is that they are struggling. Spending hours on the internet or at job fairs can be a draining process, and it can become harder and harder to present yourself in an upbeat and positive light to potential employers. This is why an organized, professional-looking, and visually sharp resume is so critical. This is the first introduction between yourself and a potential employer, and these first impressions are everything!

If you've ever asked someone else for their help in crafting your resume, you know without a doubt that everyone has opinions on what to include and not to include on a resume. Should you open with some sort of "summary" or "objective" about your skills and experience? Should your resume fit on one page only or is it acceptable to make it 2? Do you need one general resume, and one industry-specific resume with you at all times? How do you write a cover letter? Does anyone read cover letters anymore? The list goes on and on and answers to these questions are still up for debate! The reality is the job seeker needs to make their own worth stand out in a confident way without seeming arrogant or unprofessional. Employers can afford to be extremely choosy so even one small mistake can be the fatal error that earns your resume a one-way trip to the shredder.

"Resume building workshops" are an excellent way to introduce job seekers to the art of resumes. Plus, they are a volunteer opportunity for professionals in the community to give their time. Our next resume workshop is tomorrow, and we have been fortunate enough to have the event sponsored by a local organization as part of their service learning project. This is also an opportunity to gain "match" support as well as cultivating relationships with interested community members who may be able to devote their time on a longer-term basis.

What do you think makes for a great resume that will stand out from the competition??