Jewelry-making is one in a myriad of jobs people with disabilities do while working in contract services.
Just like any other business, contract services have to evolve to stay in step with changes in the marketplace; meaning that people with disabilities who work in these environments have to be equally adaptable to learning new skills.
In Missouri, a contract services organization is finding more work in recycling and packing than its traditional task of manufacturing wooden shipping pallets. Tony Brown of the Maryville Daily Forum writes that the shift has helped garner a $100,000 grant from the state. General manager Nicki Samson tells Brown this will allow for the immediate hiring of an additional 3-5 employees with disabilities, and enable the organization to explore expanding its operations both in scope and size:
Plans are in the works to add tin and plastic to the mix… Samson said that agreement may now expand to include six other northwest Missouri Counties. She also hopes to meet soon with other area haulers in an effort to negotiate similar deals.
Meanwhile, a contract services organization in eastern Ohio is turning the tables on businesses that have outsourced jobs overseas. The Marietta Times reporter Evan Bevins article, “Made in Marietta: By WASCO,” looks at several products being made by people with disabilities and sold all over the United States, and even outside the country.
The organization began producing ceiling tiles more than 30 years ago, earning itself a reputation through being featured at home shows and conferences across the country. Now the company is involved in several other ventures, including engraving and jewelry-making, along with more conventional fulfillment services.
The willingness of people with disabilities to work hard is evident during Bevins’ visit, as the workers were putting in extra time to assemble and package an order of landscaping stakes for a customer. The organization’s CEO, Jan Powell, says they review worker compensation every six months and provide pay raises based on productivity increases:
We have to make sure everybody gets a fair wage and that they have employment that’s meaningful to them… said [Powell].
In the jewelry-making division, workers are given creative license to select colors and patterns they find appealing. One customer has ordered cufflinks and pendants to be given as appreciation gifts to the company’s own employees, some of whom are based in Europe.
The employees working in both these organization defy the conventional wisdom of what people with disabilities can and cannot do. The people who work in contract services have to have the ability to take on a myriad of tasks, including assembly, sorting, packing, and fulfillment for a wide variety of customers. Ask ATI about the work its contract services division performs, and don’t be surprised at the length and breadth of the answer.
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Image by rmkoske, used under its Creative Commons license.