Young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds have a world of experience, but some need support to translate that to the workplace.
We understand that finding a job here can be difficult for lots of reasons. Some employers want you to have work experience in Australia, and the Australian workplace can be hard to understand.
Employment Empowers connects newly-arrived young people from migrant or refugee backgrounds with volunteer mentors, who are able to support you to find work.
When you join the Employment Empowers program, these volunteer mentors support you by:
- helping you to think about what work you want to do in Australia
- working with you to look for and apply to jobs
- sharing their experience with you and answering your questions about working in Australia.
Who can join the program?
Young people from refugee or humanitarian backgrounds, between 18 and 25 years old, who have been in Australia for 6 months to 5 years and need help finding a job.
To join the program, you must:
- Be 18 – 25 years old
- Have been in Australia from 6 months to 5 years
- Be from a refugee or humanitarian background
- Currently live in or around Melbourne
- Be interested in finding a job or work experience opportunity
- Meet your mentor 1-2 times a month, in person, at a community library or public place or on Zoom
- Commit to this program for up to 12 months.
Information for young people
Employment Empowers can help you if you have been in Australia for 5 years or less, and if finding a job is challenging for you because:
- You don’t have much, or any, Australian work experience
- Your qualifications are not recognised in Australia
- You are still learning English
- You would like to learn more about looking for and applying to jobs in Australia.
Resources
Check out our video series, Career Convos, where we spoke to people working in various industries and roles. We discuss tips on how to find work, how to stand out in your applications and interviews, and what a typical day in the role looks like.
Refer a young person or apply
To make a referral, please fill in the Employment Empowers Referral Form or contact us on 03 9340 3700 for more information.
If you are a young person and would like to apply for the program, you can email us at employmentempowers@cmy.net.au to let us know you are interested.
Become a volunteer mentor
We are looking for volunteers who have professional work experience in Australia in any industry to support newly-arrived young people to get ready for work through mentoring.