Australia's greatest
employment success stories of the past 12 months were shared on
stage last night, when the winners of the 2011 NESA Awards for
Excellence were announced.
|
Left:
The award winners, Michael Ashman, Chantelle Young, Ali Ranjbar
and Matthew Moore from Jymbilung House.
|
Sally Sinclair, CEO
of NESA and host of the Awards, said "While the awards recognise a
special few, all providers of Australian Government-funded
employment services have achieved something remarkable by helping
millions of Australians into work.
"These awards are recognition of
those dedicated professionals who are working in the Job Services
Australia system. There are few programs that truly acknowledge the
direct and lasting impact that employment services have on
improving the social fabric of our society. The NESA Awards for
Excellence do," she said.
|
The 2011 NESA gala awards dinner
was held at The Sofitel Hotel in Brisbane last night as part of the
NESA National conference. The winners were presented with their
trophies by The Hon Kate Ellis MP, Minister for Employment
Participation Minister for Employment Participation and Childcare;
Minister for the Status of Women, and representatives from each of
the sponsors.
And the
winners are...
|
ACHIEVER OF THE
YEAR
Sponsored by Brookfield
Multiplex and Stockland
Michael Ashman from
Whittington, VIC - nominated by MatchWorks
Michael's childhood was stripped
away by substance abuse in the home. "One of my earliest
memories was using syringes as water pistols as a kid," he said in
a statement to the Awards judges. As an adolescent, Michael's life
spiralled out of control. It wasn't until 2009, at the age of
38, when he sought help from an employment service that he truly
turned his life around with a clear vision of what he wanted to do.
With the help of the team at MatchWorks in Geelong, Michael's focus
was to complete his training as an Alcohol and Other Drugs Support
Worker. He uses his personal experiences to help others facing
similar challenges. Working with an Alcohol and Other Drugs
Services unit in the Geelong Area, he was recently promoted to Lead
Case Worker, supervising other case workers whilst maintaining a
hands-on role.
|
Above:
Achiever of the Year Michael Ashman from Geelong with Tim
Beattie from Stockland and David Redding from Brookfield
Multiplex.
|
CHAMPION EMPLOYER OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Brookfield
Multiplex and Stockland
Jymbilung House,
Beaudesert, QLD - nominated by Mission Australia Employment
Solutions
To the Mununjali people of
Beaudesert, Jymbilung means "FAMILY" and this is the philosophy on
which it is built. It's a place where elderly Indigenous
people and their carers can find comfort and support. Some just
need a helping hand - someone to mow their lawn or cook a hot meal,
while others require ongoing care. Jymbilung House has become part
of the social fabric of this community south of Brisbane, and over
the past 11 years more than 40 job seekers have joined this family
with help from Mission Australia.
|
EMPLOYMENT CONSULTANT OF
THE YEAR
Sponsored by
RecruitmentSuper
Ali Ranjbar from ORS Group,
Parramatta, NSW
Imagine having a tertiary-qualified
job you loved in your mother country, but feeling that you had to
flee because your wife and daughter faced extreme discrimination.
Imagine taking a year-long journey to freedom, but only knowing
your new country from hear-say. Imagine having been a respected
educator, but arriving in Australia without the ability to
communicate. Ali can. He was a school teacher, principal and
counsellor in Iran. Listing acceptance by Australians amongst his
greatest achievements, he turned his experiences into powerful
energy. Through his linguistic skills in five other languages he's
created significant employment opportunities with non-English
speaking employers from his base at ORS Group in Western
Sydney.
|
Right:
Employment Consultant of the Year Ali Ranjbar from ORS Group,
Parramatta with The Hon Kate Ellis MP, Minister for Employment
Participation and Childcare; Minister for the Status of Women and
Megan Bolton from RecruitmentSuper.
|
BRIGHT STAR AWARD
Chantelle Young from Global Skills in Penrith,
NSW
Overcoming a childhood touched by
alcoholism, violence and poverty, Chantelle became the first in her
family to complete high school. Pushing aside bullying, she
turned to the one man who inspired her - her Pop. A well respected
Indigenous elder who has played a pivotal role in the development
of Legal Aid, his success gave Chantelle the determination to
succeed as well. And succeed she has. Chantelle has excelled
in her role with Global Skills in Penrith and has become a valued
mentor to young indigenous job seekers in Western Sydney.
Inaugural NESA Employment Discovery
Grant Recipient Announced
Sponsored by RecruitmentSuper
|
Above:
Discovery Grant recipient, Matthew Clarke.
|
The 2011 NESA gala awards dinner
also featured the announcement of the recipient of the inaugural
NESA Employment Discovery Grant. ... as Matthew Clarke from
Campbell Page in Dapto, NSW.
Matthew will accompany NESA CEO
Sally Sinclair to an "invitation only" OECD Local Economic and
Employment Development Forum in Europe where global trends, issues
and real-life solutions successfully implemented overseas are
discussed.
|
Awards Sponsors
Above: Award winners and finalists
with (far left) Sally Sinclair, CEO of NESA
Awards Host
Enquiries?
Awards Absolute (NESA Awards Convenors)
T: 1300 88 22 59 E: nesa@awardsabsolute.com