Jordan O’Reilly was inspired to establish an online platform that connects people with disability to carers after he saw his brother’s face light up when meeting a support worker.
Mr O’Reilly, 33, who helped care for his brother Shane while growing up, realised the experience had given him a passion he could turn into a career. He is now the chief executive officer and co-founder of the online platform Hireup, established in 2015 to connect people with disability to support workers who fit their needs.
Jordan O’Reilly, CEO and Co-founder of Hireup, an app connecting people with disability with support workers.Credit: Janie Barrett
“Seeing the opportunity right in front of my face, the experience that I had my whole life growing up with and supporting my brother really set me up for, not only a career that I was good at, but something I was deeply passionate about,” he said.
Sadly, Shane passed away in 2011, but his example left a legacy. Mr O’Reilly said more than 10,000 people with disability and their families received support through Hireup, which employs a similar number of disability support workers across the country.
Mr O’Reilly is also helping promote the NSW government’s new $11.4 million career and employment advice service that aims to help people match their skills to job opportunities.
Premier Dominic Perrottet will on Wednesday launch the new online service Careers NSW to provide access to more than 40 volunteer industry experts in growth industries.
“Careers NSW will supercharge our pandemic recovery by ensuring every jobseeker in NSW has online access to career advice regardless of their experience or education, so they can take advantage of the jobs of the future,” he said.
The one-on-one service will be piloted in western Sydney, south-western Sydney, the Mid North Coast and the state’s north-west ahead of the full rollout in 2022.
Skills and Tertiary Education Minister Geoff Lee said the pilot would initially target 10,000 people and include school students from the middle of next year. The service will allow people to book appointments on the Service NSW website and get tailored advice from a careers specialist or expert working in the field.
Jobseekers get $11.4m career service to supercharge pandemic recovery
Source: Philippines Alive
