Emily's role in helping people to find lasting work

Emily is a passionate advocate for the job seekers she looks after as an employment consultant.

And her passion compels her to the extra miles to ensure there are local opportunities available for them.

In rural Victoria, the APM teams in Benalla and Wangaratta have forged a bond much closer than the 24 miles that separate them.

Emily is a member of “team bang” (a mix of their town’s names), who have collaborated to give many local job seekers the opportunity to secure sustainable employment.

“I am extremely passionate about advocating for people and making sure that people within the community, employers, and anyone I come across in my job are educated about the benefits of hiring somebody with a disability” Emily said.

She regularly sees the barriers people with disability face when it comes to finding work and is determined to make workplaces more welcoming.

“I think a lot of people have come from workplaces that don’t have positive workplace culture” she said.

She has come to appreciate how a positive workplace culture can influence employees, particularly for herself at APM.

Within her local office, and as part of team bang Emily has an environment that motivates her work in enabling better lives for people in her community.

She has people she can relate to, collaborate with and approach for help from when she needs it.

“It makes my job easier when I have a supportive team, a supportive manager and people pushing me to do more, to up my productivity.”

“Having a positive workplace environment allows me to be a good EC (employment consultant)” Emily added.

According to Emily, a person’s lived experiences can bring great value to their work in a role like an employment consultant – along with a good listening ear.

All these things add up to success for Emily, along with the people she helps, enabling better lives in more than one way.