The zoo is looking for people with developmental disabilities

– For more than 15 years, Dyreparken has recruited summer employees with developmental disabilities for a project called the Wellbeing Patrol. The patrol has had up to 10 employees each season, and has been led by an experienced summer employee, a so-called season manager. Until today, the Welfare Patrol has worked 2-3 days in July, where the tasks have been to ensure that the parks are tidy and representative, writes Dyreparken in a press release on Thursday afternoon.

According to the report, Dyreparken’s good experiences with the Welfare Patrol have inspired the company to consider hiring on a year-round basis, but initially as temporary work training. The new project will provide the opportunity for other work tasks and in different departments compared to before.

– Initially, we are thinking of temporary job training for people with developmental disabilities. If the project is sustainable, we would like to look at employment on a year-round basis. We consider our hotels and restaurants as possible arenas for work training. As an employee of ours, we believe it is important that everyone should be able to be the face of the public, regardless of developmental disability or other functional level, says HR manager at Dyreparken Kristine Warp.

The zoo learns that many people with Down’s syndrome, or other diagnoses, are an important resource that can be of great benefit to both guests and staff. Through the Well-Being Patrol, the holiday destination can confirm that experiences such as inclusion, togetherness and meaningful work are important to the employees.

– Being part of the community is important for all people. Outdoor furniture can be very tough, and we still want to do something about that. Everyone has good qualities, and it’s about finding them so that they can flourish in their job, concludes the HR manager.

The project is a collaboration through NAV in Kristiansand. For the time being, Dyreparken has not concluded on the number of candidates or which departments and tasks are to be covered in this initiative. This will be assessed continuously and individually in each case.

– People with intellectual disabilities are people who often have a lot to offer a workplace. In addition to this group being a resource in the labor market, we see that they contribute to a positive environment. It is important that this group is included in working life, says recruitment and marketing adviser at NAV André H. Gabrielsen.

Interested parties are asked to contact the marketing and recruitment adviser at NAV, André H. Gabrielsen, for further information and application for work training.

Facts

Just under 10% of adults with Down’s syndrome are employed in Norway, but in our part of the country the proportion is higher. NAV’s overview from last year shows that Agder has 17.8% in work.