The Oregon Employment Department (OED), one of WWP’s partners at WorkSource Yamhill, submitted an impressive success story about one of its participants, Robyn Gett.

Robyn came into WorkSource Yamhill when she was living in her car. After many years devoting time and energy to her children and grandchildren, Robyn travelled to McMinnville from Tacoma, WA, in search of a permanent job with a living wage, and long-term benefits for retirement.

When Robyn first came to the WorkSource office, she met with David Harvey and Amanda Parsons, OED Business Employment Specialists. Together, they discussed her current situation and how she could benefit from the services WorkSource provides. Robyn had great work history, communication skills, education, and solid computer skills, but those skills did not translate to interviews. Robyn met with Amanda several times to work on her resume and talk about applying for jobs that would provide enough income to help her save money for housing.

Robyn immediately registered with Express Employment and found employment in a few local wineries. Her goal was to work as many events and tastings as possible jobs to accrue enough money to secure housing. Since Robyn could not leave her Washington State SNAP program, she was not eligible for Oregon STEP benefits.

Robyn’s hard work paid off. In October, she interviewed for a community sales manager position with an independent living facility in Newberg. Robyn started her new job in late October and is receiving full benefits, paid time off, a base salary of $60,000, and annual commissions.

On December 21, 2017, Kayla Murray joined the ELY program in Salem, Oregon. She entered the program looking for a mentor to put her on the right path to earning a GED, getting mental health support, and learning job readiness skills that would prepare her to live on her own. Before the ELY Program, Kayla was homeless and struggled with mental health issues and drug addiction.

Kayla shared, “I have been with the ELY program for five years. The ELY Program has done amazing things. When I was homeless as a youth with nowhere to go and transitioned into a shelter, a lovely caseworker introduced me to the ELY program. I got halfway through the ELY program when I ended up relapsing on drugs. I then struggled to get sober as I went through my active addiction. I ended up pregnant with my three-year-old son.”

Kayla decided to get drug addiction support once she found out she was pregnant. She joined the STEP program to earn her GED and further her education. Kayla wanted a job that would help others believe in themselves and overcome addiction. She stated, “I fight mental health problems and strive to be the best influence for my son’s future.” It was not an easy battle, but she was able to get clean with the support of the ELY program and Northwest Human Services. She is four years sober and only needs math to obtain her GED.

The ELY program has helped her overcome barriers with drug addiction, mental health, child support, and housing. After four years, Kayla proved to herself that she could make life changes for her son and herself. She moved into her new apartment in mid-June and works full-time at Target.

Kayla summarizes her success by saying, “I am thankful for the ELY services; they helped me with resources when I hardly could afford my own clothes. I will be starting college courses as soon as my math GED is finished. My life has changed for the better. I’m no longer homeless and work enough to support my son and myself.”

Congratulations to Kayla as she pursues the life she desires and deserves!

Jason Staats, co-owner of Across the Street Vintage & Resale located in West Salem, recently spoke to the Willamette Workforce Partnership (WWP) Board of Directors about how the Youth Wage Grant program helped his business and the youth he recently employed. Jason describes his store as a “… fun and funky store providing a safe place to shop and great prices on new and used goods.”

Jason applied for the Youth Wage Grant as soon as he learned about it through WWP’s newsletter in April of this year. The Youth Wage Grant program reimbursed Jason’s business $5 an hour for hiring a youth working their first job. According to Jason, “this program helped bolster my business’ bottom line and was a very welcome benefit. Labor cost is the first thing that affects our bottom line and this grant helped us maintain staffing.”

Although reimbursed $5 an hour, hiring an inexperienced youth had risks. Jason believes the subsidies lowered the risk and made hiring youth worthwhile. Because of this program, Jason was able to give the youth employee more hours. The youth learned many valuable skills including being a team player, communication, cash handling, and resilience. At the end of the grant, the youth moved to another job with confidence in their employability skills and more experience.

Hiring youth is not over for Jason. Based on his experience with the Youth Wage Grant, he plans to hire two more youths part-time to help run his business.

This experience has been a win for Across the Street Vintage & Resale, a win for the youth employee and a win for the Youth Wage Grant program!