Giving things a crack pays off – Tanner’s story.
Tanner has been able to manage his extreme anxiety to find a permanent job with an egg farm where he feels happy and respected.
When the Adelaide job seeker joined MatchWorks in 2017, he had never worked or completed formal education. Tanner identifies as transgender and MatchWorks Employment Consultant, Bessie Baker supported Tanner to change his name on his birth certificate to be gender-specific to him. She also enrolled him in education to complete his South Australian Certificate of Education.
“Tanner is a very special client,” Bessie said. “Despite his deep-seated anxiety, he was keen to further his education and to participate in the small job club we were holding.”
“Before I met Bessie it was hard for me to find work,” said Tanner. “I tried to do a course in business, but it was too difficult.”
A new path
When Tanner was ready, Bessie reached out to an Adelaide egg packer and distribution centre for possible employment. After a phone call between owner Anne, Tanner and Bessie, things started to move in a positive direction.
“When Tanner started work, he needed some support,” Bessie said. “We had daily calls with him and weekly contact with his employer. For months he was so anxious that he would eat lunch alone, but with some encouragement he started visiting the lunchroom for a drink. Now he talks to everyone there and he is highly-regarded at work.”
Bessie also supported Tanner with:
- Personal Protective Equipment for work including boots and clothing.
- Fuel vouchers.
- Daily support calls, transitioning to weekly.
- His literacy with challenging documents.
“Tanner has been happily employed for three years and the farm DC has no intention of losing him,” Bessie said. “He oversees heavy equipment, enjoys the physicality of the job and is always smiling.”
“Bessie helped me to follow my passion, and I still talk to her regularly. I’m happy now, I really like my job and it’s physical which suits me a lot.”
Find out more about our employment services for job seekers and businesses, or call 1300 13 23 63 to chat to your local team.