{"id":6901,"date":"2021-09-08T08:30:11","date_gmt":"2021-09-08T12:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/?p=6901"},"modified":"2021-09-08T08:32:00","modified_gmt":"2021-09-08T12:32:00","slug":"maine-department-of-labor-encourages-employers-to-evaluate-hiring-strategies-to-remove-barriers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/2021\/09\/08\/maine-department-of-labor-encourages-employers-to-evaluate-hiring-strategies-to-remove-barriers\/","title":{"rendered":"Maine Department of Labor Encourages Employers to Evaluate Hiring Strategies to Remove Barriers"},"content":{"rendered":"

MDOL\u2019s Division of Vocational Rehabilitation partners with employers to match them with Maine\u2019s underemployed <\/i><\/p>\n

\"Eric<\/a>
Photo: Eric Vorous in his Sodexo uniform.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

AUGUSTA<\/b>\u2013 Designed to meet Maine\u2019s immediate and ongoing workforce needs, the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) is helping Mainers with disabilities seize job opportunities and employers find the talent they need in this tight labor market. September is Workforce Development Month, and it comes at a time when the country is experiencing a challenging labor market.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the economy continues to improve, the Maine Department of Labor is focused on connecting employers with the jobseekers they need to thrive, including those who have often been left on the sidelines,\u201d said MDOL Commissioner Laura Fortman.<\/b> \u201cI encourage businesses to have equal and inclusive hiring policies, to re-evaluate hiring barriers that have often prevented applicants from consideration, and to consider working with our Department. There are many people who are eager to gain employment and contribute to their communities, yet hiring barriers prevent them from doing so.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maine\u2019s Department of Labor announced in July that 16,300 jobs had been added since the beginning of 2021<\/a>, yet many employers are struggling to fill vacancies. The program\u2019s goal is to connect employers to historically underemployed Mainers to gain new traction and ease the labor challenges Maine businesses are facing.<\/p>\n

DVR matches employers with employees through informational interviews, job shadows, paid work experiences, and on-the-job training. With today\u2019s immediate need for workers, the state\u2019s goal is to facilitate relationships with employers as they navigate a tight labor market, and to create opportunities for Mainers with disabilities to establish viable career pathways.<\/p>\n

In 2020, DVR served over 9,000 individuals through job placement and training, continuing education, and on-site job support.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis program is a win-win,\u201d said Dan Roy, District Manager for Sodexo, a global food service provider, and a large Maine employer. \u201cSodexo is committed to long-term team building \u00ad– DVR\u2019s program helps with our retention efforts and also positions new employees for continued professional growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSodexo made the hiring process simple for me. They\u2019ve been great to work with,\u201d said Eric Vorous, who was recently hired as a barista at the University of Maine at Farmington caf\u00e9 through the DVR program.<\/p>\n

Businesses interested in partnering with the Department of Labor to participate in this program and create new employment opportunities can call 1-855-ALL-HIRE.<\/p>\n

More information is available at the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Photo: Eric Vorous in his Sodexo uniform. <\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MDOL\u2019s Division of Vocational Rehabilitation partners with employers to match them with Maine\u2019s underemployed AUGUSTA\u2013 Designed to meet Maine\u2019s immediate and ongoing workforce needs, the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) is helping Mainers with disabilities seize job opportunities and employers find the talent they need in this tight labor market. September is Workforce Development Month, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"5","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","spc_primary_category":0},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6901","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":5,"label":"News"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"","author_link":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/author\/"},"comment_info":"","category_info":[{"term_id":5,"name":"News","slug":"news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":5,"taxonomy":"category","description":"News about AgrAbility","parent":0,"count":258,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":5,"category_count":258,"category_description":"News about AgrAbility","cat_name":"News","category_nicename":"news","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6901","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6901"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6901\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6906,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6901\/revisions\/6906"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6901"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6901"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6901"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}