John S’s story

When John first began the Skills for Education and Employment Program at MTC Australia, he was focused on developing his digital skills, but he was unable to attend with consistency and regularity as he would sporadically find temporary employment while he was trying to complete the program. 

The MTC team worked collaboratively with John to find solutions to his barriers and together they decided he was an ideal candidate for an MTC innovative initiative delivered at Fairfield Library. The Fairfield Library SEE classes aim to build the skills of our participants so they can work within the Fairfield community while also providing access to the additional resources available at Fairfield Library.

It was in this class that, with the help of his trainer, John began to grasp and retain digital skills such as internet searches, email communication, and cyber security. Gradually, John gained confidence in using computers for both daily personal use and for his job-searching endeavours.

With John’s confidence and competency in digital skills at an employable level, it was time to begin actively looking for a job. John’s trainer assisted him, first by brainstorming what type of employment would be suitable and enjoyable. While John initially only considered basic labouring on a building site suitable, he also had cleaning experience so that expanded the types of jobs he could apply for.

Using John’s newly developed digital skills, they searched online for suitable positions and found a few positions available at Coles when his experience cleaning was beneficial. John quickly became excited at the prospect of securing a job with a reputable company!

John’s trainer helped him to apply for a position at Coles, and to his surprise, John received an invitation to a face-to-face interview at Coles in Fairfield almost immediately. John’s interview went very well, and he was offered a position.

After receiving the job offer, John needed to complete an extensive online process that included submitting paperwork and doing online training. Although John’s digital skills had improved during his time at MTC, John’s trainer decided that, given the importance of the entirely digital induction process and John’s lack of experience, he would help him to complete his paperwork and online training.

The number of steps required prior to starting the job was quite overwhelming for John, and John’s trainer dedicated an extensive amount of time and effort to assisting John in completing these requirements to go the extra mile towards helping John attain employment.

John was very grateful to his trainer for his continued encouragement and help in completing the process, saying, “If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have got this job”.

Congratulations, John! We know your hard work and determination will help carry you forward in your new role.