Utilizing Resource Ownership

Nathan was introduced to Job Squad, Inc. a couple of years ago through the WVDRS. He was interested in becoming an employee of Pre Sort in Charleston, West Virginia.  Nathan was hired at Pre Sort to work on the line, but due to unforeseen circumstances, the business had to lay off some of their employees.  Nathan was a new hire, so unfortunately he was laid off.  Nathan’s parents did not give up, however, and continued to seek assistance in helping Nathan find employment in the community.  Job Squad, Inc. received the DHHR Customized Employment grant in 2014 in Kanawha County which allowed Nathan to begin his employment search again. 

Jan, a Career Counselor in the Charleston office, met Nathan and his family back in March 2014.  Jan began the “Discovery” process with Nathan which allowed her to get to know ‘who Nathan was’ as an individual – what his skills, interests, and talents really are.  Jan found that Nathan is a very enthusiastic and energetic individual who wanted to work.  She also found out that Nathan had developed a fondness for Chris Wilson, the supervisor at Pre Sort, along with the other employees who worked there.  Each time she met with Nathan, he continued to express great interest in returning back to work at Pre Sort.  The problem was there were no employment opportunities available at Pre Sort.

Together, Nathan and Jan continued to explore other opportunities in the community that would accentuate his talents and accommodate his personal needs.  Unfortunately, none of these job strategies turned into an employment opportunity that was beneficial for Nathan.  Jan began to discuss her frustration with Chris because she knew that Nathan had a real desire to work and was able to make a contribution in the employment arena.  Together, Chris and Jan discussed the possibility of bringing Nathan back to work at Pre Sort because this was Nathan’s desire.  Fortunately, business has picked up for Pre Sort and Chris made the determination that Pre Sort could use another piece of equipment called a Strapping Machine.

 Through Resource Ownership, Nathan’s parents provided the funding for the piece of equipment and Nathan has been hired to once again work at Pre Sort.  Resource ownership is a mutually beneficial process of acquiring materials, equipment, or skills that, when matched to a job seeker’s interests and customer needs, generates profits for the employer and wages for the employee. (Griffin, C.C., Hammis, D. & Geary, T. (2007). The Job Developer’s Handbook: Practical Tactics for Customized Employment. Baltimore: Brookes Publishing.) An example Griffin-Hammis uses is a truck driver who owns a tractor-trailer applies for a hauling job. Without the trucking equipment, the trucker faces unemployment, or a less satisfactory, lower paying hauling job.  People with the most significant disabilities are not often recognized for their exploitable gifts and talents, hence their high unemployment rate. Resource ownership counteracts the effects of disability stigma by suggesting a shared risk between the worker and the employer (and perhaps the funding agency), and a partnering approach to job creation.  Nathan is the owner of the strapping equipment at Pre Sort and if for any reason he were to leave his employment site, he would be able to take this equipment with him, or allow Pre Sort to purchase the equipment at that time. 

Resource ownership follows the tradition of career investment deeply ingrained in the psyche of our culture. The job seeker’s satisfaction must remain the focus of attention, blended through careful negotiation in the marketplace to reveal mutual gain between the employee and the employer. Anything less than the consumer-driven approach wastes taxpayer money, makes the job seeker appear incompetent to the community, and is not customized employment. Through the skillful work of Jan, our Career Counselor at Job Squad, Inc., and the willingness of Chris Wilson, supervisor at Pre Sort, utilization of Resource Ownership was negotiated and allowed Nathan to become an employee of Pre Sort, working four days a week, 20 hours per week.  This was a “win-win” situation. 

 Megan Krohe

Megan Krohe began working with Job Squad in March 2014 as a transitional student through the Harrison County Board of Education.  Megan graduated from Bridgeport High School in May 2014.   When we first began working with Megan she expressed a desire to work in the child care field.

Since Megan stated that she wanted to work with children through our process of Discovery, a trial work site or Internship was secured at Cubby’s Child Development Center.   Megan works at the site two to three days a week.  She has completed classes at CHOICES on Positive Behavior and Child Abuse and Neglect.  Megan enjoyed these classes and was excited about all that she learned.

Megan has a natural talent in working with the children at Cubby’s.   For her birthday, they made her a card with all their handprints and Megan was overwhelmed with their kindness to her.   Megan has taken her own initiative in assisting the classroom teachers and children, and sometimes brings her own books to read to the children at the daycare.   The children’s expressions when Megan walks into the classroom is priceless and they vie for a chance to play or talk to Ms. Megan. 

Megan has become an asset to the classroom that she works in.  She assists the children during craft time, reads to the children, participates in interactive play with them, and enjoys being with them.   Megan knows each child in the class by name and interacts with each one of them.  

While in high school, Megan was a member of the Bridgeport High School track team and competed in shot-put.   Megan was elected homecoming queen during her senior year.  Megan always has a smile on her face and treats those she meets with respect and kindness.   That same winning personality is what makes her a great prospect for employment in the child care field.

The discovery process confirmed to Megan that she wants to work in child care and she looks forward to being employed in this field.  

          William “Randy” Brown was a West Virginia Division of Rehabilitation Services referral to Job Squad.  Randy had previously worked in a sheltered workshop setting in Pennsylvania from 1973 to 1995.  He was hired by Job Squad as an “on-call” Mail Clerk in September of 2006.  In this position, Randy was called in to assist with bulk mailing which included hand sorting and folding.  Staff encouraged Randy to try working around the mail machine but Randy said that someone had once told him that he was unable to work around machines and he was hesitant to work around the mail sorter.  Consequently, he worked very few hours until JSI Presort Mail moved to a new location in 2008. The move brought increased work and Randy’s help was desperately needed.  He agreed to work the line and pull mail from the mail machine which he had never done before.  After the first few minutes of doing this new work, Randy went to his supervisor, Chris Wilson, and told him that he loved it.  Since then Randy has increased his work hours from just a few days per month to full time, five days a week.  In addition to finding Randy working the with the mail, we oftentimes find him outside picking up trash on the street before and after work to help do his part in making Charleston, WV a beautiful place to live and work.  In his free time, Randy stays current with all aspects of government and daily news events and is an avid reader of history books. He has on numerous occasions, written articles for a variety of local newspapers on political and historical topics. Randy has overcome many of the barriers brought on by his disability to become a valued worker and real asset to Job Squad.

Job Squad Video 2

Job Squad Video