Northern Weekly - My Voice: Patrice Serong
Date published :
15
August
2011
15 Aug, 2011 11:04 AM
Patrice Serong, National Employment Award finalist from
Matchworks, Epping. I WAS nominated for the National
Employment Award based on my work as an employment consultant last
year, helping clients who face a variety of barriers to finding
work. I specialised in the disability program, helping people with
medical barriers like mental health issues, spinal issues, anxiety
or depression get back into employment. Since then, I've been
promoted to site manager. I was shocked and honoured to be
nominated for the award. You get so used to helping people and if I
didn't enjoy it I wouldn't be here, but as a single mother with
four kids I know what it's like to struggle sometimes.
It's important not only to help get people back into employment,
but to support them to make sure they stay employed and help them
with other issues along the way. Once we help someone get a job we
try to monitor and support them over the next six months. The most
rewarding thing is when someone starts off so negative, not wanting
to work and facing so many barriers, but after six months they turn
around and say, ''You've changed my life''. It's all about showing
people another way around unemployment, and how to turn a negative
into a positive.
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