Virtual job fair connects autistic talent with employers nationwide to create careers — and hope | CBC News (2024)

Vanessa Balintec · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 07, 2024 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: April 7

Over a thousandpeople will log on for what's dubbed the country's largest autism job fair on Monday — andwhile one organizer is happy at the turnout,his ultimate goal is to get run out of business.

The Spectrum Works virtualjob fair , which is in its 8th year, has helped bridge the gap between employers with questions and autistic people looking for work, co-organizer Neil Forester says.

Forester says the fair has helped hundreds of people across Canada get employed and help fill in labour shortages in Ontario. But he wants to see more employers get on board.

"We want to help people create careers," he said. "I will say though, my hope one day is I don't have to do this event, right. That's the ultimate goal."

According to the 2017 Canadian Survey on Disability, the most recent for which autism-specific data is available,at leastone per cent of Canadians 15 years and older are on the autism spectrum disorder, andonly 33 per cent of them report being employed.

Nadira Badri, 35, got her first full-time job at the Spectrum Works virtualjob fair in 2021.

Three years later, the Torontonianstill works at CIBCas a verification officer. She credits the support of her mentors, family and friends who encouraged her to attend and land the job — andshe hopes autistic job seekers get the same opportunity.

"A job fair is always good,but it's also good when you have people who support you," she said. "I'm grateful to have this job every single day."

WATCH | Considerneurodiverse talent, autism job fair founders say to employers:

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the fair was hosted in-person, said Forester, theco-owner ofSubstanceCares, the Toronto-based charitable foundation that organizes the job fair.

But switching to a virtual format has actually helped to reach more employers outside of the major cities like Toronto and Vancouver, give autistic people in rural areas the chance to participate and preventparticipants from getting overstimulated at in-person events, he said.

"We have a community of almost over half a million people in Canada where, with given the right opportunity, the right education, the right skills and the right training, a good majority of those people can help fill some of those labour shortages," said Forester.

"At the end of the day if we can't get somebody employed, at least we can give them experience and, you know, hope."

Fair gives mentorship opportunities, employer says

This year, there's over 40 employers and nearly 1,500 job seekers registered to attend to learn more about jobs in government departments, IT or programming, hospitality and banks. Along with introductory roles, many of the jobs are also mid-career ormanagerial level,said Forester.

EY Canada is one of the employers participating in Monday's fair, and has done so for several years.

TammyMorris, the accessibilityand neuroinclusionleader at EY Canada, said they've hired twoemployees directly from the fair and many others through referralsfrom participating agencies.Her role includes developing workplace plans that include and accommodatethe differences in how people's brains work.

Throughout the company, they've retained 95 per cent of all people hired through neuroinclusion initiatives, she said.

"The numbers around the large number of job seekers with non-visible, visible disabilities and autism included is staggering," she said, adding the fair also gives employers the chanceto network with other like-minded organizations, and mentorship opportunities for job seekers.

"We're looking for talent."

Meanwhile, Badri hopes all employerskeep an open mind when it comes to hiring autistic job seekers.

And to people thinking about participating, she says:"Don't shortchange yourself.Be open to what you can do."

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