Employment agency breaking barriers for marginalized people on Vancouver Island
A temp agency on Vancouver Island is taking a compassionate crack at the labour shortage.
Spoonies Employment Agency is dedicated to finding safe workplaces for marginalized people, including those with disabilities and 2SLGBTQ+ and racialized communities.
“As a queer person, it’s very important to be in a job that makes you feel validated and makes you feel like you can just be yourself,” Spoonies employee Em Granley told CTV News.
Granley used to work in construction, where she said she was occasionally subjected to cutting comments on worksites. She got a gig through Spoonies in October, working at a Camosun College cafe.
“I don’t have to pretend to be somebody else. I don’t have to fake anything,” Granley said. “I can just be me.”
The agency vets every employer. Its founder has navigated accessibility barriers and championed mental health breaks for some team members.
“We’ve had people come to us from very, I hate to say it, but, toxic industries where they were treated badly and now they are thriving,” said Veronica Greer, who founded Spoonies in June.
Often, employers are happy to make accommodations based on someone’s abilities, Greer said.
“They just wouldn’t know how to do so without the help,” she added.
Granley’s employer has worked with five other Spoonies employees.
“We want to show them that the [food service] industry is for everybody,” said Greg Brown, Camosun College’s food service director for Aramark.
“If we’re not taking care of our people, we don’t have a business.”
Brown credits Aramark’s contract with Spoonies for helping keep Camosun’s food facilities afloat.
“We’re able to open all six of our outlets every single day to full capacity and create a really welcoming, happy environment that people have a good time working at,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
N.Y. prosecutors charge Luigi Mangione with murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO, court records show
Late Monday, Manhattan prosecutors filed murder and other charges against Luigi Nicholas Mangione in the killing of UnitedHealthcare's CEO, according to an online court docket.
Union dropped wage demand to 19% over four years in Canada Post negotiations: CUPW
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) has reportedly dropped its wage demand to 19 per cent over four years, CUPW negotiator Jim Gallant told CTV News.
Taxpayer-funded Eras Tour tickets returned by federal minister
While tens of thousands of fans packed Vancouver's BC Place for the last shows of Taylor Swift's Eras Tour this weekend, a federal cabinet minister wasn't one of them.
Sudbury, Ont., family traumatized after hospital said loved one had been released, when in fact they had passed away
Sudbury resident Angela Vitiello says a staff member at Health Sciences North told her that her brother, Allan St. Martin, was released from the hospital late last month when, in fact, he had passed away.
What the upcoming holiday GST relief will mean for consumers
The federal government's GST break will arrive this Saturday, just in time for the last stretch of holiday shopping.
Liberal government survives third Conservative non-confidence vote
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's latest attempt to topple the minority Liberal government in a non-confidence vote failed on Monday, thanks to the New Democrats.
Katie Holmes refutes story about daughter Suri Cruise’s fortune
Katie Holmes has posted a screen grab of a Daily Mail article, which reported that her 18-year old daughter, whose father is Tom Cruise, is now a "millionaire."
Polygamous U.S. sect leader gets 50 years in prison in scheme to orchestrate sex involving children
A polygamist religious leader in the U.S. who claimed more than 20 spiritual “wives” including 10 underage girls was sentenced to 50 years in prison on Monday.
Trudeau says dealing with Trump will be 'a little more challenging' than last time
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said dealing with incoming president Donald Trump and his thundering on trade will be 'a little more challenging' than the last time.