SEEDworks Offers a Safe Place to Learn, Build Skills

Getting back on your feet after years of hard times can be challenging. Often what’s needed is just for someone to give you a chance. 

And that’s what the Mustard Seed’s SEEDworks program aims to do. 

Eric Chiu, Employment Manager at the Mustard Seed, has been running the program with the help of three coaches since 2020. 

“SEEDWorks is essentially the social enterprise branch of the Mustard Seed and the employment program specifically,” says Eric. “The main purpose is to help people transition back into the workplace.”

The project gives people a fixed-term contract to do entry-level work in the community, with the support they need to help them build the skills they’ll need at a permanent position. 

“What we’re doing currently is litter and needle collection in the Chinatown and McCauley area and Old Strathcona,”  says Eric. “In the past we’ve dabbled in some other elements and different ideas, but right now, during covid and slowly post-covid, our bread and butter is helping people to just get out and re-acclimate to the workplace.” 

The goal is to see each employee leave the program for permanent work elsewhere. 

“We help with resume-building, interview prep, job searching, and also just conversations,” says Eric. “We call ourselves coaches because we want to help empower and equip people with the skills to not only find a job, but hold onto a job.” 

The challenges the program’s clients face are varied. 

Some of them may not have worked for several years at a time and need to get back into a regular routine or learn new skills like conflict resolution and communication. 

“In the larger world, if we don't get along with someone, we can avoid them,” says Eric. “In the workplace we can’t quit a job just because we don't like someone. So SEEDworks is a safe environment for people to learn, experience, and grow. If there’s a problem we say ‘How can we better manage the situation? You didn’t make it to work on time, so what are your bus routes? What do we need to do to get you to work on time?”

By providing these contract employees with a safe place to make mistakes and learn from them, lifelong skills can be built and retained. 

“Once they’re in a more long term employment, they've got the skills to manage and address any of the hardships that come up on a day-to-day basis that we all face,” says Eric. 

 The program wouldn’t be what it is without the support of the City of Edmonton, through Capital City Cleanup, and local community revitalization boards in McCauley, Chinatown, and Old Strathcona. 

“They’re the ones who fund it,” says Eric. “It's a service agreement based on a certain number of hours on each day.” 

While earning an income and practicing skills, the program employees are able to engage their passion for giving back.

“We’ve seen numerous individuals that have stayed at our shelters go through this program,” says Eric. “They’ve had unstable housing, they haven’t worked for several years whether because of addictions or mental health at times, or they’ve been victims of domestic abuse and were fleeing violence.”

In these complex situations, getting back on your feet can seem like an insurmountable challenge.

“We had one person who hadn’t worked in over 20 years,” says Eric. “They didn’t even know where to begin. They had goals in mind but they didn't know what it’s like to be in the workplace, what kind of skills are necessary. That’s where the coaching comes in, we show them what to expect through working for SEEDworks.”

They worked with the program for about six months and eventually found secure employment elsewhere. 

“We’re going to walk alongside them in going through an application, interviews, and background checks,” he explains. “How do we discuss their past with a future employer, if they ask about a record check? How do they navigate an HR onboarding process, bank accounts, SIN number? Through all these things, we’re here to walk beside them.”

The program also ensures they know what their rights are. 

“Sometimes with the population we serve they might not have that experience and might not be treated in a legal or fair way,” says Eric. 

The program works. People adjust to the new environment and eventually find work in the community. 

“Over the past two years, 14 participants had been formally part of the program,” says Eric. “Of those, 12 moved onto sustainable employment opportunities upon or shortly after graduation.”

Eric emphasizes that this program works because of the partnership. 

“We have really strong partners who believe in the program,” he says. “We’re performing a service that’s required, it’s not a make-work project. It’s a natural, organic fit between the business associations.”