Page 4382 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 22 September 2010
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I would like to mention specifically Cafe Ink, which is operated at Woden library by Woden Community Services. This again is a wonderful enterprise through the Social Enterprise Hub. It provides opportunities for people with mental illness to gain employment experience. And again it is a wonderful thing because it is based in a library, so they will have a lot of interaction with people coming through the library. They also do fantastic catering. Ms Burch and I were both on a panel in an event that was run as part of the Social Enterprise Hub. They provided the catering there and did a fantastic job.
This is an area where there is real interest amongst community groups and organisations to get involved. There are Indigenous enterprises and there is one area we thought could provide opportunities for young refugee women. There are probably good opportunities there; it is another area where a group of people who are typically socially isolated and do not always get opportunities could be involved. They do have very particular and specific skills, which would be a real asset in this type of enterprise.
I would like to point out that we recognise that, with the percentage of employment, yes, there were some reductions in the past because of the type of employment opportunities that people did have. We have seen a reduction in Australia. It is not just here in the ACT; it is in the commonwealth as well, and across governments. Often private enterprise does much better than the public service in terms of employing people with disabilities.
We can improve in this area and provide opportunities to create a work environment where people feel they can disclose that they have a disability. It creates a better work environment, not just for them but for all employees, if we can enable that and have that happen.
Once again, I thank all members for their contributions today. I believe that this is an important motion.
Motion, as amended, agreed to.
Adjournment
Motion by Ms Burch proposed:
That the Assembly do now adjourn.
2000 Olympic Games—volunteers
MR DOSZPOT (Brindabella) (8.58): On Monday night, 13 September 2010, there was a gathering of around 80 former ACT Olympic volunteers at the Canberra Stadium. The occasion was a 10-year reunion of ACT Olympic volunteers who took part in the Canberra portion of the Sydney 2000 Olympic football tournament in September 2000.
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