Black, Latino GLBT couples face heightened discrimination
Black, Latino GLBT couples face heightened discrimination
By Gary Barlow
Staff writer. Copyright by The Chicago Free Press
A national leader in moving people living with HIV/AIDS back into the workforce praised a new employment program at Chicago House April 19 and offered suggestions to area service providers on how to help clients achieve their employment goals.
Karen Escovitz, of theMatrix Center at Philadelphia’s Horizon House, spoke at a West Side discussion about the Increase Independence and Income Initiative (I Four), a program developed by Chicago House in conjunction with the AIDS Foundation of Chicago.
“Work is the single most normative adult experience,” Escovitz said. “Anyone who’s excluded from work activity will always be marginalized.”
Escovitz praised the I Four program, which began last fall, for “taking on service-level change and cultural change,” and for embracing a collaborative approach and incorporating long-term data collection.
Similar job development programs by social service providers, Escovitz said, while well meaning, often take a simplistic approach that leads to failure.
“What the programs often look like is, ‘Well, we’ll help people write resumes and then they’ll get jobs,’” Escovitz said. “That’s just a small piece of this.”
Escovitz said the I Four program, to be successful, must “work with clients where they are.” Some clients, she said, may need more preparation for searching for jobs and becoming part of the workforce. Others, Escovitz said, may need minimal preparation and should be encouraged to move more rapidly toward employment.
“It’s not about our outcomes,” she said. “It’s about their lives. ÉFocus on what’s in it for them. Eliminate any non-essential steps and unnecessary delays.”
Escovitz also said programs should take a long-term approach to clients’ success.
“Prepare people to do jobs, not just to find them,” she said. “Job-seeking skills are different than job-keeping skills. ÉIncorporate content that focuses on managing one’s HIV in the workplace.”
People living with HIV/AIDS are going to have varying goals, Escovitz said—some people may want to work full-time, while others may elect to maintain some healthcare benefits by only working part-time.
Nonetheless, she said, HIV/AIDS service providers should help clients adapt to the changing reality of the disease—people with HIV/AIDS are living longer, healthier lives.
“The system is overloaded,” Escovitz said. “There’s infinite growth of need, but there’s not infinite growth of resources. ÉWe need to prepare people for independence in the work arena.”
The Rev. Stan Sloan, Chicago House CEO, urged HIV/AIDS service providers who attended the forum to take advantage of I Four.
“Any of you who have clients for job referral, please start sending them our way,” Sloan said. “What’s needed in this program right now is going to be exponentially needed in the years to come.”
By Gary Barlow
Staff writer. Copyright by The Chicago Free Press
A national leader in moving people living with HIV/AIDS back into the workforce praised a new employment program at Chicago House April 19 and offered suggestions to area service providers on how to help clients achieve their employment goals.
Karen Escovitz, of theMatrix Center at Philadelphia’s Horizon House, spoke at a West Side discussion about the Increase Independence and Income Initiative (I Four), a program developed by Chicago House in conjunction with the AIDS Foundation of Chicago.
“Work is the single most normative adult experience,” Escovitz said. “Anyone who’s excluded from work activity will always be marginalized.”
Escovitz praised the I Four program, which began last fall, for “taking on service-level change and cultural change,” and for embracing a collaborative approach and incorporating long-term data collection.
Similar job development programs by social service providers, Escovitz said, while well meaning, often take a simplistic approach that leads to failure.
“What the programs often look like is, ‘Well, we’ll help people write resumes and then they’ll get jobs,’” Escovitz said. “That’s just a small piece of this.”
Escovitz said the I Four program, to be successful, must “work with clients where they are.” Some clients, she said, may need more preparation for searching for jobs and becoming part of the workforce. Others, Escovitz said, may need minimal preparation and should be encouraged to move more rapidly toward employment.
“It’s not about our outcomes,” she said. “It’s about their lives. ÉFocus on what’s in it for them. Eliminate any non-essential steps and unnecessary delays.”
Escovitz also said programs should take a long-term approach to clients’ success.
“Prepare people to do jobs, not just to find them,” she said. “Job-seeking skills are different than job-keeping skills. ÉIncorporate content that focuses on managing one’s HIV in the workplace.”
People living with HIV/AIDS are going to have varying goals, Escovitz said—some people may want to work full-time, while others may elect to maintain some healthcare benefits by only working part-time.
Nonetheless, she said, HIV/AIDS service providers should help clients adapt to the changing reality of the disease—people with HIV/AIDS are living longer, healthier lives.
“The system is overloaded,” Escovitz said. “There’s infinite growth of need, but there’s not infinite growth of resources. ÉWe need to prepare people for independence in the work arena.”
The Rev. Stan Sloan, Chicago House CEO, urged HIV/AIDS service providers who attended the forum to take advantage of I Four.
“Any of you who have clients for job referral, please start sending them our way,” Sloan said. “What’s needed in this program right now is going to be exponentially needed in the years to come.”
posted by Carlos T Mock at 4:30 PM
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