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The Salvation Army Employment Plus (E-Plus) program in Australia recently marked a decade of finding jobs for thousands of people. E-Plus is the country’s largest provider of employment services—with 85 offices and 1,400 staff members—and places 1,000 people in jobs every week.
“We believe no one is unemployable,” said Chief Executive Major John Simmonds.
The Salvation Army first started helping the unemployed in Australia in 1889. By late 1897, it had found jobs for almost 70,000 people. After the government announced in 1996 that it would privatize employment services, the Army developed the idea for E-Plus, and in May 1998, 61 offices opened throughout Australia. E-Plus was largest during the late 1990s and early 2000s when 98 sites were open. At the time, the unemployment rate was 7.7 percent; today it is 4.3 percent.
Information from the August 23, 2008 issue of the Australian War Cry.