Committed to
supporting you
“I really enjoy working with my friends and working as a team. I have learnt different skills and have gained a lot of confidence in my ability. ”
James, Packaging
Committed to
supporting you
“I really enjoy working with my friends and working as a team. I have learnt different skills and have gained a lot of confidence in my ability. ”
James, Packaging
Supported Employment
What is supported employment?
Supported employment is a job where people with disability can get extra support when they work.
At Merriwa, we support our employees by aligning with their NDIS plans and goals, and provide on-the-job support and training.
What type of work will you do?
At Merriwa, we have a range of areas you can work in.
PACKAGING
You can be part of a team that carries out a number of tasks including; packing boxes, stickering, labelling, gluing, moving pallets, warehousing and more.
TIMBERS
Our Timbers team produces glue laminated timber beams which requires the use of machinery and equipment to manufacture the beams. Some roles include; using trolleys to move timber, gluing and clamping timber, using specialised equipment to cut and trim the timber.
NURSERY
Learn new skills in plant production and our retail nursery including, planting seedlings and seed, potting up, weeding, watering and more.
What support does Merriwa offer?
No matter the division you work in, we have different supports to help you do your job.
Our Support Officers and surrounding team provide daily support. Some of these supports include:
- training and skill development
- ensuring your employment goals align with your NDIS plan
- be someone to talk to
- building community connections.
Our team are there to help you in your employment journey.
How do you become a supported
employee at Merriwa?
If you want to become a supported employee, there are some steps involved. These can include:
- Checking that you have NDIS funding in your plan under Core Supports (Supports in Employment). Talk to your NDIS Planner, Support Coordinator or Local Area Coordinator (LAC)
- Talk to the team at Merriwa about what opportunities are available. Your Support Coordinator, NDIS Planner or LAC
- Once you have had a chat to the team, you can visit our sites and do a tour to understand about working at Merriwa.
- If you enjoyed the tour and want to try working at Merriwa, and if we have a role to suit, you can start as a trial to see if ongoing employment is right for you.
- The team at Merriwa will be there to support you and check in each day to make sure you’re on track and feel good in your new role, and make any changes to support you at work.
What does a day look like for a Merriwa employee?
All employees at Merriwa work different hours and on different days. This means you might work with the same people or new people each day.
When you arrive at work, you will check in with your Support Officer and set up for work for the day at your division. Your team will have a break for morning tea and lunch each day. Sometimes, we celebrate birthdays and other occasions with cakes and slices, or even a BBQ lunch!
If you need help anytime during the day, you can speak to a person on your team or talk to your Support Officer.
You will meet new people and work in a team. Some divisions also have the radio playing with music! We also run a footy tipping competition and raffles each week, so there is always something to be involved in at Merriwa.
Why work at Merriwa?
Supporting you to reach your goals
Learn new skills, grow and develop
Integrated team and Support Officer team
Fun and supportive environment
Learn life skills
Pathways from
school to employment
Being part of the Merriwa family
We are one of the leading Australian Disability Enterprises (ADE) nationally, building the standards of what supported employment and an integrated workplace should be like.
Why is that?
We offer the best care and service when it comes to employment by caring about each person that joins our growing family – including you!
Commitment is at the heart of Merriwa. We’re committed to supporting you to succeed, no matter how big or small the milestone is. For us, it is important we share the wins, the celebrations and the successes – when our team succeeds, it’s a celebration everyone shares.
When you work with us, we support you to be the best version of yourself possible by focusing on your needs. This includes providing opportunities in skill development and learning to expand skills that go beyond working at Merriwa. This includes training and development in general education and other certificate level courses.
For some people, we might be their life-long employer. But for others, we’re the stepping stone between starting out in the workforce and working in open employment.
Each employment journey is unique and we’re here every step of the way for people with disability in our community.
Community connections
We have a range of excellent connections within the community. This includes working closely with schools to give students with disability the chance to take part in work experience. It also includes our team taking part in all abilities-sport and other community events. Some of the community partnerships we have include:
- Merriwa Magpies All Abilities AFL team
- Wangaratta Community Fun Run
- partnering with local education providers to deliver certificate level study opportunities.
