Three nights a week, Ericka Orr travels to The University of Pennsylvania where she helps keep a bustling student cafeteria neat and clean. At any one time, hundreds of university students can be found eating in the multi-story cafeteria, swarming in and out with the typical haste of college students. Supported by job coaches from the Employment Partners program at The Arc of Philadelphia/PDDC, Ericka moves methodically from table to table, getting each one spic and span for the next batch of students.
After three months on the job, Ericka has acquired a reputation as a hard worker who does her job without complaining. Her supervisors praise her as an employee who listens well and works diligently. “Ericka is very consistent and responsible,” says Leticia Lynch, Assistant Food Service Director at Aramark Corp., which manages the cafeteria. “She’s done everything we’ve asked her to do. For Ericka the best part of her job is the people she meets. Living at home with her grandmother, Ericka says she rarely ventures out of her house. Because of crime in the neighborhood, her grandmother discourages her from spending too much time on the streets. Occasionally she takes a bus to The Gallery by herself, where she enjoys wandering through the mall. She says she is grateful to have a job like hers—a place where she can make friends and meet new people. “I really love my job!” says Ericka, her trademark smile creasing across her face. “I am comfortable here. When I wasn’t working, I was so bored. I had nothing to do and I didn’t have a lot of people to talk to. Now I have a girlfriend to talk to.Ericka’s relationship with Employment Partners stretches back over ten years. Beginning in the mid-1990s, Employment Partners has helped her find jobs at Burger King, Bahama Breeze, and The Philadelphia Popcorn. Each job, she says, offered different challenges and rewards. And each experience has taught her new skills—both interpersonal and on-the-job— giving her a breadth of experience that she brings to her current job.
For now, she says she really enjoys working at The University of Pennsylvania. As she scans the room for signs of disorder, cleaning kit in hand, she seems to take evident satisfaction in keeping her area clean. She says that cleaning—especially sweeping and mopping—is the type of work she most enjoys doing. This is a personal insight that years in the workforce have given her. To make sure that she fully adjusts to her new position, Employment Partners job coaches work closely with her at the job site. In her three months working in the cafeteria, she says she has developed an especially close relationship with her primary job coach, Chester Cornell.
“Chester comes and sees me all the time,” says Ericka. “He checks up on me. All of the coaches look out for me, so there aren’t any problems. When there were problems Chester would just tell me, ‘You’re a good worker. Just be safe’.” According to Chester, Ericka’s eagerness was one of the few problems that arose in her adjustment to the job—knowing when not to work. “When she first started,” said Chester, “She would wipe down the tables even if students were still eating. I worked with her to let her know to make sure the students were finished first. That was a couple of months ago. There haven’t been a lot of problems since then.” This sort of initial adjustment is not unexpected. Skilled job coaches like Chester are trained to help new workers gain the skills and confidence they need. With time, as Ericka becomes better adjusted to the position, Chester says he will increasingly step back, allowing Ericka more and more independence. “I think this job gives Ericka a chance to have some structure to her life,” says Chester. “I think it makes her feel like a whole person.” In only three months, he says, he has seen a difference in her. Her attitude is brighter and she seems more confident. She has also become more outgoing, talking more with some of the other staff.
According to PDDC Chief Operating Officer Laura Princiotta, the key to assuring that workers succeed in the workplace is to offer extensive pre-job training. “Employment Partners believes that the best way to ensure success of our clients is to offer the best evaluation and training possible,” says Laura. “The first thing we do when a new job trainee comes in the door is to undergo extensive vocational evaluation. This process helps them discover new skills and abilities.”bbWith the help of their vocational team, trainees are then offered one of seven vocational training areas: Home health care, clerical support, materials handling, childcare, environmental services, and shipping and handling.
“The training really helped,” says Ericka. “It made me feel more comfortable.” She says that, in addition to her vocational training, the weekly “job club” was especially valuable. This hour-long facilitated discussion modeled how to act during interviews, how to relate to a supervisor, and how to handle problems in the workplace. Job club, she said, taught her the value of being respectful in the workplace. Employment Partners also offers literacy and math classes.
Talking about the process, Ericka said the hardest part was waiting for the call back after her interview. ‘I felt bad when I wasn’t working. I spent all day waiting for them to call me. When they wouldn’t call, I felt really bad. I was bored and had nothing to do.” When the call finally came she said it was a “great day.” Three months later, her face still lights up when she talks about her new job. When asked how she likes working at the cafeteria after three months, her face lights up. “This is a really good job!” she says.
The Arc of Philadelphia / PDDC • 2350 W. Westmoreland St • Philadelphia, PA 19140 • 215-229-4550