M&S: A Flagship for Employment
Ready for Work Participant Isabel with Section Manager Tracey, Dublin Mary Street, April 2016
M&S continue to be the flagship company for BITCI’s Ready for Work programme.
In 2016, across Mary Street and Grafton Street stores, M&S have taken on 14 people for work experience to boost their confidence and experience and to get a valuable reference at the end. These people have come from various services in the community, including Dublin Simon, Peter McVerry Trust, and the HSE’s community mental health teams.
Their challenges may be big but they are guaranteed to be treated as part of the team when they go for work experience in Marks & Spencer.
A huge success this year is that 9 people have gone on to start work with M&S. Many of these are long term contracts, not just seasonal ones, providing a real chance for people to move towards independence and security in their futures.
“ I loved doing something different, meeting new people, and getting to know how M&S do things”. RFW Participant
A recent success story was Daragh, who worked in the Mary St Foodhall in September and was awarded a contract just a few weeks into his placement. He was kept in the wines section as he had prior experience from his own wine shop business years ago, before falling on more difficult times financially and losing his home.
M&S, led by Jackie Reilly in the Recruitment team, were the very first company to provide placements back in 2002. They have also volunteered as mock interviewers sine then. In total M&S have helped an incredible 226 people to move on from challenges such as homelessness towards employment – an outstanding commitment to inclusive employment.
Looking forward to continuing the great work with M&S in 2017.
Ready for Work Participant Martin with buddy Paul, Dublin Mary Street Loading Bay, April 2016
