Our Workforce Development Department aims to address the underlying causes of unemployment and under-employment among individuals to end homelessness for good. Our services are designed to meet the need of every individual, regardless of their background or level of experience.
For clients who are formerly or currently homeless, barriers to employment can range from physical disabilities and mental health challenges to a lack of formal work experience, education, long bouts of unemployment after job loss, or general stigmatization of homelessness.
At Star of Hope, we aim to prepare our clients for long-term, sustainable employment. We do this by building on our clients existing skills and empowering them to achieve their personal goals through commitment, hard work, and a strong belief in God.
Employment Readiness
Our services offer essential skills to those seeking careers full-time, living-wage employment. After evaluating an individual’s employment history and assessing their work skills, our dedicated, workforce development staff work with our residents to create an employment plan tailored to ensure success.
The basic skills we provide to individuals through our Employment Readiness Program include:
By providing these basic but beneficial steps, individuals are better prepared to find gainful employment more effectively, but most importantly, they can have the confidence necessary to pursue jobs in which they previously believed they were not qualified or prepared to apply.
In addition, the program assists with obtaining birth certificates, state issued identification cards, drivers licenses and social security cards, which are all pertinent in securing stable employment.
Employers
For many, homelessness is very challenging to get out of for a variety of reasons. One of the challenges that people experiencing homelessness encounter is finding employment that provides a family-sustaining, living wage.
Most individuals who are homeless want to work. But for many, working doesn’t provide enough to afford their own place to live. Therefore, we partner with local employers toward mutually beneficial opportunities that fill job vacancies and close job and income opportunity gaps.
When working with Star of Hope and our efforts to reduce homelessness, there are some benefits to consider, including:
For more information, please contact the Workforce Development Department at jobs@sohmission.org.
