The Pathways for Change Hospitality Training Program is For Change Co. ’s flagship impact program. Launched in 2017, it utilises our various hospitality venues around Melbourne to offer paid employment and on-site barista & hospitality training to young people who are at-risk of or currently experiencing homelessness.

The idea of Pathways for Change is simple. If trainees receive training and paid employment, it will enable them to secure employment elsewhere in the hospitality industry, or any other industry of their choosing, when they feel confident enough to do so. Equipped with workplace skills and confidence, our trainees will be able to permanently escape the homelessness cycle.

We offer a personal reference for each trainee and when appropriate, we will link them up with potential employers via our Open Shift program. This will ultimately assist the young person who participated in this program in transitioning to economic independence.

As part of the 100+ hours of training the trainee undergoes during their time at Pathways for Change, they develop and master the following technical and behavioural skills…

• Coffee making / operation of coffee machine
• Point of sale operation
• Workspace maintenance
• Food handling
• Cleaning procedures
• Venue opening and closing procedures
• Customer service & rapport building
• Teamwork
• Hospitality industry standards and expectations
• Initiative and problem solving
• Effective communication in the workplace

Not only do the trainees participate in regular weekly shifts to build these skills, but they also participate in numerous extra workshops which allows them to build the following skills…

• Financial literacy and budgeting
• Workplace regulations / liability understanding
• Employee Rights at work, entitlements, dispute resolution strategies
• Goal setting and life planning strategies
• Job readiness: understanding the skills linked with each industry, responding to application criteria, interview training, the importance of references. 

This allows the program to have a deeper impact on the trainee’s skills, knowledge and confidence which allows them to build their autonomy and better transition to independent work.

Yes. Trainees who participate in the Pathways for Change program are paid the Hospitality Industry (General) Award 2020: Level 1. This is to ensure that the trainee’s work and contribution to our workplace is strongly valued and reinforces their responsibility to work hard at improving their skills at a consistent level. 

Not only this, but we require each of our employer partners to offer the above award, as a minimum, to graduate trainees.

Open Shift is a network of businesses in partnership with For Change Co. of various different industries who are passionate about social change and looking to embed some pretty incredible impact into their business model. These businesses employ trainees as they graduate Pathways for Change, allowing them to transition into consistent employment and break the cycle of homelessness. For Change Co. will collaborate with your business to ensure the trainee is briefed on your venue’s operations and will support the trainee’s transition to a role in their new workplace. 

This is a really awesome initiative and we’re super thankful for our current Open Shift partners and the opportunities they provide our trainees. If you’re a business owner interested in taking on some new staff and being part of an amazing network then sign up to the program here.