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"The beauty of [the O*NET Interest Profiler] for people in their 60s and up is that it opens up the
employment horizon, beyond the narrow slice they already know."
~ Todd C. Hamilton, Director, Senior Employment Program, Baton Rouge Catholic Community Services
Catholic Community Services (CCSBR) in Baton Rouge offers a free Senior Employment Program for "workers
ages 55 and better" in the city and 17 other civil parishes, mostly rural. With more than 25 years of
experience, the agency is now a mandated partner in Louisiana's Workforce Investment Act (WIA)
initiatives. The program uses the O*NET Career Exploration ToolsT to help retirees and other older adults
find jobs.
The Need
Since 1977, the CCSBR Senior Employment Program (SEP) has provided job search assistance to older workers.
Current support for the program includes WIA funding from the Louisiana Department of Labor and Title V
(Older American's Act) funding from the Governor's Office of Elderly Affairs.
SEP clients include grandparents bringing up grandchildren, displaced workers, long-term unemployed,
and retirees in need of more income to meet basic needs. The program serves several hundred clients of
all faiths at its Baton Rouge headquarters and two smaller offices in Hammond and Houma. It also
circulates a mobile laptop lab among One-Stop Career Centers in the rural parishes of Southeastern
Louisiana.
Most clients want immediate employment rather than long-range career counseling. They have a work history
behind them. But they need help with relating their experience to opportunities in today's labor market.
The program is designed to open their minds to a broader spectrum of potential employment sources that
might suit them.
O*NET Role
To accommodate their clients' needs, SEP staff designed a concise and efficient job search assistance
package that opens up their clients' horizons to a wider range of job possibilities. The O*NET Interest
Profiler is a key tool in the process.
All clients take the Interest Profiler, using either the computerized or the pencil-and-paper version.
Initially staff members were reluctant to use the computerized Profiler because it might be intimidating
to older clients. However, they quickly found it worked well.
After completing the Interest Profiler, clients receive its handbook of occupations and the combined
master list in hard copy. As Todd Hamilton says, these resources "work great" and provide an economical
tool that helps open clients' minds to what's out there in the workplace and what they have to offer.
SEP staff also use the O*NET Work Importance Locator. It is especially useful to clients who are
contemplating a serious career change or have other complex employment problems, such as long-term
unemployment.
Key Results
Hamilton thinks most participants take the Interest Profiler because staff want them to do so. However,
once they have taken it, clients say they found it very helpful in making them more aware of existing
employment opportunities that match their interests. It also helps them see how their own experience
and qualifications can fit in different kinds of jobs.
The Profiler is "easy to follow, very intuitive, and you can't beat the price," Hamilton says. Staff
adapted the scoring sheet to make it larger and easier for older adults to read and handle.
All clients are asked to complete a customer satisfaction survey and the program gets exceptionally
high ratings. For Hamilton, the benchmark question is: Would you recommend this program to a friend?
In 2003, responses have been 100 percent positive. And in a tough job market, nearly one-third of the
program's participants have already found employment.
Contact
Todd Hamilton, Director
Senior Employment & Adult Services
Catholic Community Services
Baton Rouge, LA
Telephone: 225-336-8700
Email:TCHamilton@ccsbr.org
URL: http://www.ccsbr.org/
