Hiring People with Mental Illness?

Employers know who to hire and not to hire. Equality and non-discrimination in the workplace is important here but when people with mental illness walks in our doors seeking for job, giving one is a tough decision.

Persons with Mental Issues (PMHIs) are not simple to hire. However, the employer can overcome it by making some effort and receiving support. The good news is that there is an increasing number of employers who have taken this huge step to hire PMHIs.

The Institute of Mental Health supports Job Club. This is a service that prepares the PMHIs for their employment. It does not end there because the institute also support PMHIs through job placements.

Job Club works diligently with employers to help and support PMHIs so they can achieve their best whilst in their workplace. As of the moment, Job Club is working with more than one hundred employers from retail, cleaning, administrative and food and beverage industries.

The good news is that these employers successfully integrated PMHIs to their workforce. Aside from Job Club, there are also other organizations with the same goal. These organizations include Singapore Association for Mental Health, Singapore Anglican Community Services and National Council of Social Service.

The focus of such organizations is to boost the employability of PMHIs with the help of rehabilitation and training to meet the needs of the employers. In the case of the National Council of Social Service, they have this Project Hire. Project Hire brings together PMHIs through employment forums to raise awareness.

This is a good initiative and for sure the care providers of PMHIs will be happy of the opportunities given.