SEMCA Celebration of Success

Daniel came to the SEMCA Wayne Service Center (staffed by ETD-Wayne) as a Dislocated Worker. He had been employed in the printing business for 11 years by the same company. Unfortunately, the company closed and re-located out of state. Daniel is hearing impaired and required some special assistance in finding a new company to employ him. An initial meeting was held with an interpreter to discover what kind of employment Daniel was interested in. All agreed that Daniel should pursue positions in the printing industry because of his education and background in the field. Employment and Training Designs, Inc. contacted printing companies in the area and set up interviews. A sign language interpreter was provided for all interviews.	Daniel (right) with his Job Developers, Diana Brown (left), and Bob McDonnell (center).
Daniel was well liked by the potential employers that he met with, but all employers had safety concerns. The equipment in their printing facilities all had sound alarms for notifying employees of safetly situations as well as equipment failures and/or that the machinery needed attention. They were concerned about Daniel’s saftey on the job. After a few rejections, Malloy Lithography was contacted. The company was willing to work with Daniel’s impairment and was impressed by his credentials. An interview was set up to discuss what would be necessary to create a safe work environment for Daniel. Michigan Rehabilitation Services was consulted because of their expertise with the hearing impaired. MRS worked with the employer to discuss ways to overcome the safety issues.	(left to right) Dianna Brown, Job Developer, Wayne Service Center, Employment & Training Designs, Inc.; Daniel Spear; Dan Miller, Plant Manager, Malloy Lithography; Susan Clausnitzer, Director of Human Resources, Malloy Lithography; and Robert McDonald, Job Developer, Wayne Service Center, Employment & Training Designs, Inc.
Adjustments were made to the equipment such as adding flashing lights in place of buzzers. Michigan Works! provided the funding for an interpreter for Daniel during his orientation and training at Malloy. Daniel is now successfully employed and earning more than he was at his previous job. Malloy Lithography is very happy with their new employee and we are delighted that we were able to help Daniel. We hope that Malloy Lithography will be an example for other companies when it comes to employing the phisically challenged. Sometimes a little innovative thinking is all that is required to accomplish positive change.	Daniel on the job with his supervisor, Dan Miller.