VERTO Chief Executive Officer, Ron Maxwell, today acknowledged data released this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (in its 2012 Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers) shows the rate of psychological disability is on the increase.   

Mr Maxwell said VERTO was proud to support people with disability as a Disability Employment Services provider for over 20 years and as the host of the National Disability Coordination Officer role for the Western New South Wales region for over six years.

"We’re proud to be a provider of Disability Employment Services in Bathurst, Kempsey, Lithgow, Mudgee and Port Macquarie," Mr Maxwell said.

“Being a specialist provider is particularly important given this particular research released by the ABS indicates that people with psychological disability have lower participation rates in education and employment when compared to people with no disability.

“Over 750,000 people identified as having a psychological disability in 2012, up from 600,000 in 2009.

“At VERTO, we have seen a similar increase in clients who report with mental health conditions.

“For example, since 2012 to 2014, the number of job seekers who have been assessed as suffering from mental health conditions has increased by over 60 per cent.

“It’s important that people with psychological disability know there are providers like VERTO working in local communities who provide specialist, tailored support,” Mr Maxwell said.

Mr Maxwell also said VERTO has a proud and impressive history of assisting people with disability into sustainable employment. 

"Since 2010, VERTO has placed over 750 job seekers with disability into employment with nearly 500 employers,” Mr Maxwell said.

“In the past year alone we’ve placed over 200 job seekers with disability into employment, and we’ve worked with over 170 local employers to achieve this.

VERTO’s local achievements in 2014 included:

• Bathurst - making placements with over 70 employers.
• Kempsey - making placements with over 15 employers.
• Lithgow - making placements with over 20 employers.
• Mudgee - making placements with over 10 employers
• Port Macquarie - making placements with over 50 employers.

Mr Maxwell said VERTO offers a range of support to both job seekers and employers as part of their Disability Employment Services arm.

“Our team provides assessments to identify personal goals and abilities, job search advice, resume writing and interview preparation, referrals to training and work experience, support in the workplace or study environment to ensure success, and advice for employers and training providers to support individual needs,” Mr Maxwell said.

“We also provide specialist support to people with disability through our Australian Apprenticeships Centre, Registered Training Organisation and Transition to Work program.

“Given findings also recently released by the ABS show Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 35 to 54 are around 2.7 times more likely to have a disability than non-Indigenous people, specialist Aboriginal employment programs such as New Careers for Aboriginal People are also critical in helping to support cohorts who are more susceptible to disability.

“VERTO looks forward to continuing to support people living with disability across New South Wales to achieve their education and employment goals,” Mr Maxwell said.