Employment Services Overview

Our Vision

An inclusive and equitable world for all of us, with or without disability. 

Our Mission

To help businesses and people with disabilities realize and enjoy the benefits of inclusive employment.

Our Values

Great listening

We listen to understand and not to respond.

Teamwork

We make extraordinary efforts to help and support our clients and each other.

Client Focus

We empower, guide, and support our clients to reach their goals.

Inclusion

We want a diverse workforce and an environment where everyone can thrive and bring their whole self.  We always bring a humble and curious approach to our inclusion efforts.

Accountability

We deliver on our commitments.

Creativity

We infuse our work with creativity.  We think outside the box to discover and implement creative, innovative solutions.

Our Beliefs

• We believe work is possible for everyone.

• We believe diversity has tremendous value and everyone wins when people with disabilities are included.

• We believe our work is important.  We bring our best selves and our best efforts to our work.

• We believe conflict, problems, and mistakes have value.  They show us what isn't working and give us an opportunity to try something new.  We focus on solutions, not problems.

• We believe everyone's contributions at work should be compensated fairly and everyone should earn at least minimum wage.

How can I contact my manager or the HR Department?

Their contact information is located on the staff contact list in REV and on the front page of SharePoint.

Where is the employee handbook?

It’s located inside REV in HR Documents.

Where are client folders?

They are located in GWES_Team in SharePoint.

Service-recipient

Our service recipients are our most important customer. Our aim is to help them reach their employment goals.

Guardians and families

Guardians and families are very important customers. They can provide invaluable insight into working with our clients AND it’s important to bring your own fresh perspective to each individual we work with. Sometimes families will underestimate our service recipient or will assume that they are only able to do a handful of job that they have seen other people with disabilities do in the past.

Case Managers

Case managers refer our waiver clients to us and secure funding for our services, so they are also very important customers. Case managers are overworked, and we should assume they are doing their best and look for ways to help them out.

Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors

Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Counselors refer our VR clients to us and secure funding for our services, so they are also very important customers. VR Counselors are overworked, and we should assume they are doing their best and look for ways to help them out.

Employers/Businesses

Employers and businesses are essential to our clients’ employment success. Some businesses will be very inclusive and open to working with and supporting our clients and others will not be. Regardless of where they are right now, we want to be a positive partner in their inclusion journey. When we have positive relationships with our clients’ employers, we are able to be so much more effective in our work.

Person-First Language

We model person-first language to our many contacts in the community from parents to employers. As such we try to always use person-first language. Person-first language means putting the person before the disability. Here are some examples:

• Person with a disability (as opposed to ”disabled person”)

• People with disabilities (as opposed to “disabled people” or “the disabled”)

• Person who uses a wheelchair (as opposed to “wheelchair bound”)

*There are some exceptions to this. Some people who have Autism prefer to be referred to as “Autistic” as a way of reclaiming and celebrating their identity, ie “Jane is Autistic”. Some people on the other hand, will prefer traditional person-first language, ie “Jane has Autism”. When in doubt, follow the person’s lead or ask what they prefer.

Honoring the Individual

Don’t make sweeping assumptions about a person based on their diagnosis. Each individual we serve is unique. Their disability may present differently than that of someone else with the exact same diagnosis. They may also have preferences that are unique to them about how we should talk about or support their disability.

Asking before Assisting

Don’t be afraid to ask how you can assist. If someone tells you they “freak out” when they’re anxious, don’t quietly cross your fingers and hope they never feel anxious in your presence. Instead ask something like, “what does it look like when you freak out?” Or “How would I know that you’re feeling anxious?” Also be sure to ask something like, “What would be most helpful for me to do when you freak out?” or “What do you need from me if this happens?” Don’t be afraid to ask the questions you need answered in order for you to feel confident and safe in your work.

Prior to assisting someone who is using a walker or wheelchair, ask them if you can assist them. For example, before going out of your way to open the door, ask if they’d like that kind of assistance by saying something like, “Would you like me to grab the door for you?” Prior to touching someone’s wheelchair, always ask for their permission. For example, “Is it okay if I help push your chair through the doorway?”

We work with vulnerable adults who often have others formally or informally to help them make decisions. Often our clients will have a guardian, power of attorney, or conservator.

Guardian

A guardian is someone a court appoints to make decisions on someone else’s behalf. A familiar guardian is someone related to our client while a corporate guardian is an unrelated, professional guardian.

Power of Attorney

A Power of Attorney is someone that an individual has appointed to make decisions on their behalf (either generally to make all decisions or specifically about certain areas)

Conservator

Has the power to make decisions about someone’s finances.

Our services are funded through a local county (via property tax dollars) or through a waiver program where the cost is shared 50-50 between the State and the federal government. Anytime someone is on a waiver program, their services are funded through the State and federal government.

Waivers (CADI, DD, BI)

Straight Waiver

Straight waiver means that someone’s services and their respective funding are coordinated and managed by their case manager. Often this is referred to as just a “waiver” instead of straight waiver which just differentiates it from the CDCS Plan option of the CADI and DD waivers. The three waiver programs that our service recipients are funded through are the Community Access for Disabled Individuals (CADI) waiver, the Developmental Disability (DD) waiver, and the Brain Injury (BI) waiver.

CDCS Plan

Individuals who receive a CADI or DD waiver have the option to do a Consumer-Directed Community Supports (CDCS) Plan. Individuals who make this election get assigned a set amount of money each year that they can use to purchase and coordinate the services they choose. When someone has a CDCS plan, they will have a Service Planner who will help them write and manage their plan. Most often it is a person’s parent, guardian, or family member who works with the Service Planner to write and manager the person’s plan on their behalf.

CEED Plan (Dakota County)

When someone does not qualify for a waiver but does need services, Dakota County will authorize them to receive a Community Engagement and Engaged Day (CEED) Plan. Similar to CDCS, CEED plans are directed by the individual (and/or their family and guardian) and allot a set amount of money that the individual can use to purchase services of their choosing. Unlike CDCS, CEED plans are written by someone’s case manager instead of a Support Planner.

Anoka County

When someone living in Anoka County does not qualify for a waiver, but does need services, Anoka County pays for services directly without any kind of plan.

Case managers, either contracted or directly hired by the County, refer clients to us. Prior to getting a case manager, our clients will have had an assessment done by their county to determine their eligibility for services. Often these assessments are prompted by a teacher or pediatrician when someone is young, however, they can be done ant any point regardless of age.

Disability service providers, like us at Great Work, are regulated by the Minnesota Department of Human Services. We are licensed as a Home and Community Based Services provider and need to be in compliance with all relevant rules and regulations most notably Minnesota Statutes Chapter 245D.

In our field, responding to calls and emails in about 1 business day is the norm. Often you will be able to respond the same day and sometimes you may not be able to respond until 2-3 business days. Aim to get back to people by the end of the next business day.

You will be provided a cell phone by Great Work. This cell phone is the property of Great Work and should be used for work purposes only. At the end of your employment here, you will need to return you cell phone to Great Work. You are welcome to keep your cell phone on during times you are not working or you are welcome to turn your phone off during times you are not working. You are expected to keep up with voicemails and text messages that you receive and respond within a timely manner during your typical work hours.

We use several documents here at Great Work. Some documents help us achieve our purposes and some are required by Statute.

We document our time and client progress in a documentation software called REV.

Required by Statute

The documents we prepare and maintain for each service recipient that are required by Statute include:

• Individual Abuse Prevention Plan (Part of our Annual Plan)

• Coordinated Services and Support Plan Addendum (Part of our Annual Plan)

• Self-Management Assessment (Part of our Annual Plan)

• Release of Information

• Admission Record

• Progress Report Reviews

Great Work Documents

We use a handful of employment-related documents to help us provide great services to our clients. These documents are locations within each client’s folder in the sub-folder “GW_Employment_Documents”. You can also access printable versions of each document outlined below in the “Printable Documents” folder and in REV.

Work-related driving is reimbursed at $0.50/mile with the exception of commute time which is not reimbursed and is defined in the company’s Mileage Policy. Mileage should be recorded REV within 24 hours.

Meeting Attire

Video Meetings - Internal Meetings

Always dress appropriately, but feel free to come as you are to Great Work zoom meetings.

Video Meetings - External Meetings

Your appearance at external zoom meetings should be appropriate and should convey the message that you are ready to bring your full attention to the meeting. Appropriate workout attire is fine but do not wear pajamas to these meetings.

Searching, Work site visits, Team meetings

Dress in clothing that is appropriate and allows you to do your work. You may choose to wear clothing that ranges from casual to professional. Jeans are acceptable. “Comfy” clothing like sweatpants and pajama pants are certainly acceptable when working from home, but should not be worn when representing Great Work to clients or businesses. Feel free to dress casually and wear shorts when out on walks with clients or when meeting with them outdoors.

Employee Email Accounts

You will be provided with an email account by Great Work. While it is not part of our standard practice, you should be aware that we could access your email account at any time.

Create an “away” autoreply anytime you will be off work for longer than a day or two.

Client Email Accounts

You will help clients create email accounts that should be used only to communicate to employers on the job searchers behalf.

These should be created very soon after intake, as you’ll include this email address on applications and will share it with employers.

Ask for permission from clients at intake to create these email accounts. Give clients the option to share the login information so they can check them too, if they wish. However, discourage them from deleting any messages or reorganizing without notifying you first.

Make sure you’re able to meet your clients’ needs and if a conflict between your schedule and that of your clients consistently prevents you from meeting their needs, inform your supervisors so other options can be explored such as having another Employment Case Manager serve that client.

You must work the majority of your workday between the hours of 8 AM and 4:30 PM.

You may be asked to keep your supervisor and the team informed of your typical work schedule.

You may take time off in the middle of the day and work early in the morning, in the evenings, late at night, or on the weekends as long as you fulfill your billable and hourly requirements. Be aware that neither you nor your coworkers are expected to respond to emails, calls, or texts outside of their normal working hours. You are expected to work on 5 days each week.