Turning the tables on unemployment

By Rebecca Fraser
NARRE Warren Salvation Army employment consultant Gillad Bitterman has no problems understanding just how tough it is to be unemployed because he was — just three months ago.
The Berwick father of three arrived in Australia from Israel seven years ago and worked in the telecommunications and logistics industries.
But, following a family holiday to Phuket where his family witnessed the horrors of last year’s Boxing Day tsunami, Mr Bitterman returned home to discover he had lost his job.
Mr Bitterman said he was then knocked back for numerous jobs and as the only breadwinner found himself under enormous pressure that eventually led to him requiring daily medication.
He than registered with Employment Plus, where he eventually became an employment consultant.
“ I enrolled in a week-long Employment Plus seminar to improve my job hunting skills and when I was there I realised helping others was what I wanted to do,” he said.
Mr Bitterman then wrote to The Salvation Army human resources department and within a week was interviewed for a position as an employment consultant.
This year Narre Warren Salvation Army Employment Plus has helped people find more than 6690 jobs.
Regional manager Cheryl Harman said the Salvos were confident they would pass the 120,000 mark statewide before the end of the year.