Jamie's Story

Jamie* was referred to Workwise by Work and Income in October 2025. He was living at his family home in Waitara and had been experiencing anxiety. After finishing secondary school a few years’ earlier, he had worked at a local construction company, and completed two weeks’ work experience as an upholstery assistant. When he came to Workwise, he had been unemployed for more than two years. He wanted to find a workplace where he felt comfortable to be himself.

Exploring options

When he first started working with his employment consultant, they mainly focused on horticulture roles as this was an area he was interested in. He had started studying part-time for a Level 3 Horticulture certificate at WITT, which was going well. They approached and applied for more than 25 roles but found it a very competitive sector and without much success.

After a few months, Jamie decided to look at options such as sewing and cleaning roles. His employment consultant looked out for job listings, and forwarded the links to him via text message for Jamie to follow up.

Together with his employment consultant, they rewrote his CV and cover letter numerous times. They completed a few sessions on interview preparation and answering questions; and arranged a mock interview for Jamie with another Workwise employment consultant.

Applying for the right opportunity

Jamie’s employment consultant helped him to apply for a role at a local community organisation doing cleaning and gardening work. This time, they used AI to refine Jamie’s CV and cover letter to see if it would help with getting a different outcome.

The employment consultant asked their contacts at Work and Income, hoping to find someone that had a good relationship with the employer. The employment coordinator at Work and Income was able to assist by approaching the employer directly about Jamie’s suitability for the role, and to see if they could access the Flexi-wage subsidy.

A different pathway opens

Jamie was offered an interview! At the interview., the employer noted that he had sewing experience. Unfortunately Jamie didn’t get the job he originally interviewed for but instead, he was offered a part-time contract to help with a curtain sewing project they were running!

Jamie still wanted to be able to attend his horticulture classes so with the support of the employment coordinator, he reached an agreement with his employer where he would work slightly fewer hours, continue with his study, and come off benefit.

Looking ahead

Jamie has been working at his job for a month now, doing 20 hours per week and is off benefit. He hopes to purchase his first vehicle soon. Once he has finished his horticulture course in the middle of the year and has built up a good work history with his employer, Jamie’s next goal is to get a job with their landscaping team.

“I’m so proud of how far Jamie has come on his journey to employment”, says his Workwise employment consultant. “Throughout our time working together, he showed strong motivation and commitment to finding work. He was reliable, open to feedback and consistently followed through with job applications and interview preparation. It has been great to see his hard work result in securing employment but also having the flexibility and confidence to finish his study. I’m confident he will do well in his role and achieve his goals.”

*Name has been changed to protect privacy.