Shaliny is a great example of the power of the Blacktown Employment Accelerator to successfully accelerate the employment process for both employers and job-seekers.

Ann Shaliny Johnson came from Sri Lanka in March 2016. She obtained her diploma in Community Development and Management from Sri Lanka, with strong administration and office support background. She was looking for a job without success until referred to Sydwest to seek advice to find a proper job. She received professional advise on developing her resume, and attended a few workshops regarding employment processes in Australia and the work culture and environment in Australia.

She was invited to attend the Blacktown Employment Accelerator held by SydWest to improve her chance on securing a position in Australian workforce. As a result of meeting Reach for Training through the speed-dating approach, she handed them her resume.

After the event, SydWest was advised by Reach that they had several positions available and Shaliny was referred for one of the position. Within 1 month, Shaliny had been called in for an interview and was successful. She started her job in January 2018 as a receptionist and has since moved into Training Coordinator.

Shaliny acknowledges that her English language skills were limited when she started but the job has significantly helped her improve her spoken skills (written was already ok). Shaliny is particularly grateful to Haleh, her employment officer, for helping and encouraging her – she was hesitant because of the lack of local job references and experience. Shaliny has also started studying as part of her job in Cert 3 Business administration as a traineeship