A statewide initiative kicked off Tuesday to help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) get jobs.
The Connecticut Department of Aging and Disability Services/Bureau of Rehabilitation Services and other local organizations are partnering to create AllWorkCT.
It aims to give more employers the opportunity to connect with people with IDD.
It's a combination of in person and virtual events to allow networking, hiring strategies, and eventually - employment.
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“Everyone who can work and wants to work should have the opportunity to work,” said Noelle Alix, co-owner of BeanZ&Co. in Avon.
The popular cafe aims to be an inclusive employer, giving people in Connecticut with IDD opportunity to work.
Alix says the IDD community seeking jobs was even bigger than they realized. She says sometimes their application stack is an inch thick, with more applicants than spots to fill.
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"It really made our eyes wide open how employment doesn't really exist for this population. They get out of school and there's nothing. There's no work world waiting for them, and that's really what we want to change,” said Alix.
"They're on the sidelines, and it's not necessary, and they can greatly improve a company. They make businesses better in so many ways,” said Angela Martin of Mintz+Hoke, a partner of AllWorkCT.
"We want to just really have this be a community-based effort where we are hiring, you know, one individual with intellectual and developmental disabilities at a time, and in this way, will just sort of fuel that fire,” she said. The first event is tonight from 6pm to 8pm at Healing Meals Community Project.
Martin says over 100 people are already registered for the event. Organizers say the goal is to start in the Farmington Valey and eventually add more events statewide, while being inclusive of all disabilities.
