The Employment Services Department at NJADB provides the opportunity for people with disabilities to access meaningful and gainful employment. We connect individuals with a workplace that fits their unique needs. Access to various employment opportunities is achieved through adaptive equipment and technology.

Staff News
The Employment Services Department would like to welcome our newest employees to NJADB. We are happy to welcome Chris Ward, sales associate at Shop on Main, and Harriett Monroe, SBO employee, to the agency. We are also happy to welcome new employees Asha Walker and Veronica Navarrete to Our-Co Industries.

Peggy Fontayne, an employee at the IRS Mailroom, was recently honored as our NJADB Employee of the Year. Due to her hard work and dedication throughout 2009, Peggy was recognized for both her commitment to our organization and her sustained high quality of work. The award was presented before our Board of Trustees, NJADB staff, and Peggy’s family during our Board Staff Social in October.

Peggy was recently joined in the Mailroom by Adedotun Osholowu, another loyal NJADB employee. Formerly with our company store Shop on Main, Adedotun transferred to the Mailroom after being granted an in-house promotion.

The NJADB Employee Star for November 2009 was SBO employee Leon Harris. Leon was first nominated for the Employee Star award by an NJADB supervisor. His service was then reviewed by agency directors before he was granted the award for the month.

Company Store News
Due to the recent Merck merger with Schering-Plough, our company stores now offer a variety of Schering-Plough products. Items such as Coppertone, Clartin, and Dr. Scholl’s products are now available at a lower cost than offered in general community stores. Our customers are pleased with the product line, as reflected in the success of our sales.

Our daily sales comparison shows that store sales have increased from last year in nearly all categories including gifts and logo.

SenseAbility
This past holiday season, we launched a new product line developed by the Our-Co and Company Store Team. Our first item in our SenseAbility product line is potpourri sachets and gift bags that are produced in Our-Co Industries. Our sales during the holiday season were notable, and we are continuing plans to further develop this line.

NIB
Employment services continues to develop our business partnership with National Industries for the Blind. We were recently visited by Kevin Lynch, the CEO of NIB who was given a tour of our headquarters and Shop on Main. We also submitted a letter of intent to provide additional services through the AbilityOne program at NIB. If awarded, NJADB will provide contract management services for the U.S. Department of Defense contracts. The NJADB main office has all the needed facility features to manage the high level of security needed for this project, as well as all of the accessibility features to provide employment opportunities for people who are blind and visually impaired.

IRS Mailroom Moved
The IRS mailroom made a successful move to new office space within the Springfield IRS building. All staff, both NJADB and IRS, have adjusted well and we are pleased with our new work area. Our representatives from Service Source have provided positive feedback as we continue to meet the quality standards to manage this contract.

New Operator Equipment at SBO
Our Operators at the SBO program in East Orange, have been enjoying the benefits of the new state of the art phone operator equipment that we transitioned to in May of 2009. Our Operators continue to provide high quality service to the Veteran’s Hospital community and have adapted seamlessly to the new equipment. We continue to work with the VA Hospital administration to ensure we are provided items electronically and as updated as possible to ensure accessibility for our employees who are blind.

Our-Co Industries Expansion Delayed
Since our office move in February 2008, Our –Co has been planning for program expansion to extend services to more people with sensory impairments and developmental disabilities. We have experienced some obstacles to identifying candidates through the Division of Developmental Disabilities, and most recently received notice that DDD is freezing all funds associated with new development. We have identified three people who would truly benefit from our program, however we are unable to access the state funding needed to support services for these people. NJADB will continue to advocate through these challenging fiscal times to ensure people with disabilities receive the services they require to reach their individual potential for independence and quality of life.

If you would like more information on our Employment Services developments, please contact NJADB by clicking the words “Contact Us” on the left of our website.