Montreal Job Search Strategies Forum Report

NEADS Web-Based Employment Resources

Video

This video is only available in French

Natalie Fougère, NEADS

Natalie Fougère said NEADS was founded in 1986.

The association represents people with all types of disabilities. NEADS is a member of the Council of Canadians with Disabilities.

The association’s main objective is to promote full access to post-secondary education and employment. NEADS’ members are college and university students, recent graduates, on-campus support services, and employers. The 12 members of the board of directors represent each region of Canada.

NEADS provides a number of services including research, information on financial support and special funding, online distribution of information through their websites www.neads.ca and www.nows.ca, and student scholarships such as the Equity Through Education Scholarship. In addition, NEADS holds a biannual national conference; the next is scheduled for November 2010 in Winnipeg.

Some of NEADS’s early employment initiatives include: the Employer Advisory Council to NEADS started in 1994, Investing in the Future Mentorship Project in 1996, the Student Leadership Forums in 2001, and the Job Search Strategies Forums Project in 2005.

In 2003, NEADS launched a free web-based employment resource: www.nows.ca (NEADS Online Work System). Job seekers with disabilities can post their resumés, search for and apply for jobs. At present, 1,700 students and graduates have registered (270 of whom are from Quebec), and there are 109 employers from 25 industries, across all of the provinces and territories. Job seekers are primarily looking for positions in the following fields: government, office and administrative services, customer service, social services, community and volunteer groups, and arts and entertainment. Employers currently registered include Air Canada, Bell Canada, Canada Post, CBC, BMO Canada, and the RBC Financial Group to mention only a few.

Fougère said that forum participants could find out more by consulting www.neads.ca, calling (613) 380-8065 or 1-877-670-1256, or by emailing frank.smith@neads.ca.