Employment Connection

ASSISTING INDIVIDUALS WITH LIMITED OPPORTUNITIES TO SELF-SUFFICIENCY.

THE COMPETITIVE EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM (CEP) WORKS TO REDUCE CRIME AND HOMELESSNESS BY ASSISTING INDIVIDUALS WITH SIGNIFICANT BARRIERS INTO EMPLOYMENT, LEADING TO A CAREER. INDIVIDUALS IN CEP PARTICIPATE IN THE WORLD OF WORK JOB READINESS TRAINING, AND ARE THEN CONNECTED WITH A CAREER SPECIALIST, WITH WHICH THEY CREATE A PERSONALIZED PLAN WHICH ADDRESSES EACH OF THEIR BARRIERS TO SELF-SUFFICIENCY. ADDITIONAL SERVICES AVAILABLE TO ELIGIBLE CEP PARTICIPANTS INLCUDE BEHAVIORAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH SERVICES, HOUSING AND TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANCE, WORK-RELATED CLOTHING, EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE, AND MORE. DURING 2021, EMPLOYMENT CONNECTION BEGAN PILOTING SOLAR PANEL INSTALLATION TRAINING WHICH WAS FIRST PILOTED IN 2020. IN 2021, EMPLOYMENT CONNECTION CONTINUED TO SERVE INDIVIDUALS CONTINOUSLY DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC WHILE FOLLOWING CDC SOCIAL DISTANCING AND MASK REQUIREMENTS. THESE REQUIREMENTS RESULTED IN A REDUCTION IN CAPACITY AND TOTAL NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS SERVED. 1,465 INDIVIDUALS COMPLETED AN APPLICATION .FOR SERVICES IN 2021. 397 WERE SUCCESSFULLY PLACED INTO EMPLOYMENT AT AN AVERAGE HOURLY WAGE OF $12.44, AND 41% MAINTAINED THEIR EMPLOYMENT FOR A MINIMUM OF 90 DAYS. IN ADDITION, EMPLOYMENT CONNECTION PROVIDED HOUSING SERVICES TO 287 INDIVIDUALS IN 2021. HOUSING SERVICES INCLUDED PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING, RAPID REHOUSING AND HOMELESS PREVENTION SERVICES FOR INDIVIDUALS AND THEIR FAMILIES WHO WERE HOMELESS, AND/OR AT-RISK OF HOMELESSNESS IN ST. LOUIS CITY AND COUNTY. MANY OF THESE INDIVIDUALS WERE DISABLED AND/OR FINANCIALLY IMPACTED BY COVID-19.

MANAGED WORK SERVICES OF ST. LOUIS (MWSSTL) IS DESIGNED TO MEET THE NEEDS OF AREA EMPLOYERS IN RESPONSE TO HIGH TURN-OVER IN ENTRY LEVEL POSITIONS, AS WELL AS CLIENTS IN NEED OF ESTABLISHING A WORK HISTORY OR IN NEED OF A JOB WHILE WORKING WITH THEIR CAREER SPECIALIST TOWARD PERMANENT EMPLOYMENT AND A CAREER PATH. MWSSTL WORKS WITH AREA EMPLOYERS TO OVERCOME THEIR STIGMATIC PERCEPTIONS OF EMPLOYMENT CONNECTION'S TARGET CLIENT POPULATION (E.G. EX-OFFENDERS, RECOVERING ADDICTS, ETC.) AND ENCOURAGES THEM TO GIVE OUR CLIENTS A CHANCE TO PROVE THEMSELVES ON THE JOB. THE PROGRAM IS AVAILABLE TO ALL EC CLIENTS REGARDLESS OF THE NATURE OF THEIR BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT, BASED ON THE AVAILABILITY OF CURRENT CONTRACTS AND EMPLOYER NEED/CRITERIA. MWSSTL IS A SOCIAL ENTERPRISE DESIGNED TO MEET THE NEEDS OF CLIENTS IN MOST NEED OF POST-PLACEMENT RETENTION AND ON-THE-JOB TRAINING SERVICES.