Professional help for Job Seekers – free service across Northland
Acareer service offering free over-the-phone support alongside a series of regional pop-ups with face-to face guidance from professional careers advisors is now available for job seekers in Northland.
Launched in October 2020 as part of the Governments response to the impact of Covid-19 the service is designed to support individuals with professional career advice and resources, and has been made available through a partnership between the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) and the Career Development Association of New Zealand (CDANZ).
The Northland service is being delivered by two local highly experienced career practitioners, Muriel Willem and her team at Career Focus NZ and Lisa Halvorson and the team at Work Ready.
The service offers two hours of free direct careers guidance, either on the phone, via video chat or face-to-face and includes advice around career planning, youth study pathways, redundancies, CV, cover letter and interview support, job search tips and job market information as well as career change and retraining options.
Lisa Halvorson is excited to be part of the delivery, “this is a comprehensive service, offering true career planning, the goal is long term positive outcomes, it is not about just putting people in jobs.” As regional coordinators from Kawakawa north, her team will ensure the Regional Career Advice pop-ups increase the reach and accessibility of the service into these communities.
The careers practitioners work closely with a wide range of stakeholders in the Northland community. Their specialist knowledge means they can move across silos and connect clients into support services, training, organisations or initiatives the client may have no previous knowledge of such as the Targeted Training and Apprenticeships Funding (TTAF). The TTAF offers TEC-approved apprenticeships as well as training programmes (level 3-7) in targeted sectors where demand from employers for these skills is strong and expected to grow.
Muriel Willem feels it has been a privilege to help secure people employment that is right for them, she encourages people to reach out for the support, commenting that, “job loss and job seeking can feel really hard, confidence takes a knock, for example I see people in the 50-plus age category, employed in a role for a long time and feeling like they don’t have much to offer. We tell them 50 is young, you have so much to give, and we can help you see your skills in a new light!”
The service is open to all Job
seekers 17-years and over whose career pathway has been impacted by Covid-19, they can book an appointment with a career expert by calling 0800 601 301 or go to their local Connected site for face-to-face support. Find more information
about opening hours, visit careers. govt.nz (link to https://www.careers. govt.nz/plan-your-career/talk-to-acareer-expert/career-advice/)
The Direct Career Service is available until 25 June 2021.