Helping Qantas and ABC Staff Impacted by Job Losses
Announcement posted by Project Displaced 26 Jun 2020
Sydney, 26 June 2020: As thousands of Qantas and ABC employees learned they would soon lose their jobs in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, one resourceful former Qantas employee has taken direct action by offering all of these workers free access to Project Displaced, a volunteer run online community offering confidential job seeker support and mental health first aid, 7 days a week.
Sydney-based Anthony Cohen worked for Qantas for more than 16 years, his partner is an orchestral musician, and both have had their work contracts put on hold or cancelled. The COVID-19 crisis hit them and their extended network very personally, and this inspired Anthony to take direct action.
“We set up Project Displaced in March to help our community through this terrible and very sudden crisis,” explains Anthony. “After both my partner and I lost our jobs, I couldn’t just sit there and do nothing, so I came up with the idea of Project Displaced.”
Since March, Project Displaced has helped hundreds of job seekers from all across Australia and from every industry.
“Although we started this to specifically help employees in the airline, arts, tourism and hospitality industries we were flooded with requests from people who’ve lost their jobs in all sorts of industries. We don’t say no – we want to help as many people as we can”.
Project Displaced is run entirely by volunteers and is not connected to any Government support program. There are now more than twenty qualified Career Coaches, Recruiters, HR Managers, Mindset Coaches and qualified Mental Health specialists who all volunteer their time for free to help job seekers in need.
All consultations are private and conducted virtually via Zoom, Skype or phone call. Job seekers can choose from a confidential discussion about their current situation, goals, challenges, and skills. There are specialist services to help them write a resume and cover letter, or how to navigate leveraging their networks. And importantly there is also qualified mindset and mental health first aid.
“This week’s news about my former colleagues from Qantas brings back all of the emotion I felt when I started this initiative. The heartbreak in the Qantas staff community right now is palpable. But they are an amazing and resilient group of people and I know that those who are impacted by this devastating news offer an amazing set of skills, training and dedication that any new employer will reap rewards from”.
Project Displaced’ services are available 7 days a week. They’re open from 7:30am to 10pm every week day, and from 9am to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday”
The team of volunteers who dedicate their time and expertise to helping job seekers in need are incredible. They give of themselves for no other benefit than seeing the renewed sense of self-confidence and optimism that job seekers walk away feeling after the session. All volunteers are qualified and leaders in their professions, and come from all over Australia.
Project Displaced continually receives 5 star reviews from the job seekers that use their services and Anthony is determined to keep the free service going as long as he can.
“Right now what we need are good news stories. These are incredibly uncertain times and people are facing unprecedented challenges. Although this costs me money personally to run, it’s absolutely the right thing to do! I’ve been through redundancy twice in my career so far so I know what everyone is feeling - and I wish I had access to the services we’re offering at Project Displaced” said Anthony.
Job seekers who have been stood down or are facing losing their jobs can book a free support session instantly.
https://projectdisplaced.simplybook.me
https://facebook.com/ProjectDisplaced
Support via GoFundMe: gf.me/u/x7utt4
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