Australian Employers Network on Disability

The Mental Health Council of Australia (MHCA) has released a "National Mental Health Employment Strategy", calling for significant changes to be made to the current mental health policies, in order to remove barriers to employment for people with mental illness.

The strategy aims to improve employment opportunities for people with mental illness, and is the result of 12 months of reseach and consultations with a wide selection of consumer and community groups.

Programs facilitated by the Australian Employers' Network on Disability, including Willing & Able Mentoring, and the "Stepping into..." series have been included in the report as examples of successful strategies that can help to reduce barriers for people with mental illness seeking employment.

A full copy of the report can be downloaded from the Mental Health Council of Australia's website at http://www.mhca.org.au/documents/MHCA-Employment%20Report-final.pdf

Congratulations to everyone who was recognised at the Prime Minister's Employer of the Year Awards on 9th August 2007.

Employers' Network members were well represented among the finalists - congratulations to IBM Australia and National Australia Bank who were both Finalists in the National Employer category, and Sparke Helmore Lawyers who were recognised with a Commendation in that same category. 

Special mention goes to McDonald's Ballina, who were Finalists in the Medium Employer category.