Fernando Rivera describes his job as part HR professional, part hiring manager, and part recruiter. He works as a business consultant for the Texas Workforce Commission’s Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) program, and his clients are Texas employers who want to hire people with disabilities but aren’t sure how to start.
Rivera spoke about that work with Juliet Stipeche, executive director of the Gulf Coast Workforce Board, on a recent episode of the Workforce Solutions Podcast. He said VR staff work alongside a company’s hiring managers, team members, and HR department through the whole hiring process.
“That process could sometimes get complicated for the average HR department or the average hiring manager to the point where they would just abandon it,” he said. “And that’s what we don’t want.”
The work often begins with training. Rivera gave the example of a warehouse. His team shows the company how a worker who is blind, or a worker who is deaf or hard of hearing, could do a specific job on site. Once the employer sees that it can work, the company usually starts thinking about its own openings, and VR sets up a hiring pipeline. When a position opens, the employer tells Rivera.
“I’ll turn around to the staff and say, ‘Hey, this company over here has an opening for this position. Who do we have employment ready?’” he said.
VR works with job seekers over the long term to prepare them for work. Rivera said that when the program refers a candidate, employers can trust the candidate is ready for the job.
“When they’re employment ready, they are employment ready,” he said.
For employers who want to make their hiring more accessible, Rivera suggests starting with the job application. He said that used to be a bigger project, but a company that already uses an AI tool can now ask it to review its website for accessibility. The tool will list what needs to change and where to find help.
Rivera also talked about what one hire means outside the workplace. A new employee spends money at the local bakery and coffee shop, supports their family and, if they have children, adds students to the local school district. He said most businesses want to contribute to their communities, and hiring through VR is one way to do that.
Employers who want to work with VR can search “vocational rehabilitation Houston Texas” on their phone and call one of the numbers listed. Staff will connect them with the nearest office. Rivera noted that there are 28 Workforce Solutions offices in the region.
You can watch the full episode here:
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