Jayden Featured in ODEN Provincial Profile
Aurora’s Pizza and Spaghetti House is Finding Success by Welcoming Diversity into the Family
Most communities in Ontario have at least one favourite local institution. Whether it be a restaurant, café, ice cream shop or hardware store, these local “secrets” are often long-established, family-run-and-operated businesses that are well loved by local residents. In Sault Ste. Marie, one of those places is Aurora’s Pizza and Spaghetti House (Aurora’s). But it’s not only cherished by local citizens for its delicious fare, it’s also making a positive impression on the community by welcoming a new member to the family.
Aurora’s has a long-established commitment to workplace diversity, recognizing the need to have a workforce that represents and reflects the community it serves – including persons with disabilities. Aurora’s also recognizes that in a tight labour market, skilled and qualified persons with disabilities can help to fill job vacancies and strengthen its workforce.
Working closely with Community Living Algoma (CLA), Aurora’s has employed many persons with disabilities over the years. The high level of reliability, dedication and commitment to the job that persons with disabilities have brought with them over the years has convinced Aurora’s owners and management of the value of this underutilized pool of talent. A strong partnership has since developed between Aurora’s and CLA to support ongoing employment opportunities at the restaurant.
Jayden, a young person with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) first came to Aurora’s as a CLA summer placement in 2022. Jayden returned to Aurora’s for the summer of 2023 and so impressed everyone with his reliability, dedication, attention to detail and performance that he was made a permanent member of the restaurant team in the fall of 2023.
Jayden performs a variety of essential tasks including cleanup, dishwashing, readying supplies for kitchen staff and servers, receiving goods, restocking the pantry and helping to prepare food for cooking and serving. When first hired, Jayden worked closely with restaurant staff and employment support workers from CLA to learn the job and develop the skills he needed to work independently. Job tasks were broken down into separate parts with step-by-step instructions. Jayden quickly learned all there was to know, and he has become so proficient that he can show employment support workers how to do the job. Jayden now works totally independently and requires no workplace accommodations.
“Jayden is a person who adds value to the family business. He is an integral part of the team and one who goes above and beyond in his role,” says Tyler Vernelli, owner of Aurora’s. “Jayden is a valuable employee who will always have a job with us if he wishes. He is a welcomed addition to our growing team.”
Fact: young people with disabilities often face challenges finding employment due to limited opportunities for real work experience
Work experience gained through opportunities such as part-time and/or summer jobs, work placements and internships is essential to the future success of young people with disabilities.
Without real-world work experience gained during their school years, young people with disabilities are often disadvantaged when competing for job opportunities. Summer employment opportunities – such as those experienced by Jayden at Aurora’s – are key to gaining the skills and experience needed to effectively compete for employment over the longer term. Employers like Aurora’s benefit as well, as they see firsthand how a skilled, qualified person with a disability can effectively meet their workforce needs.
(Story reprinted from the ODEN newsletter. )
The Ontario Disability Employment Network (ODEN) is a professional network of employment service providers united to increase employment opportunities for people who have a disability.
We have over 140 member agencies, all in the business of helping people who have a disability get into the workforce. Members are from every corner of the province and support people of all disability types. Beyond Ontario, we have connections with organizations in most provinces and territories of Canada.
