Just over a year ago, Joe Lacasse was living on the streets. Now, at age 21, he has a full-time job he loves. Meanwhile, his employer, Cuong Huynh, is delighted to have a motivated auto mechanic apprentice he might otherwise have missed.

Lacasse and Huynh, 42, were connected via one of many local community programs that offer workers to businesses initially for free or subsidized wages. In return, employers take a chance on disadvantaged employees or volunteers such as those without training or experience, older workers, new immigrants or those with a disability. Business owners, employees and organizations who have taken part in such programs say the rewards for both the employee and the business are tremendous, and small businesses are among the most enthusiastic participants.

Without a program that subsidizes their initial wages, employers are reluctant to take on certain employees, says Clovis Grant, general manager of Eva's Phoenix, a transitional housing and training facility that placed Lacasse at Huynh's shop, Dupont Transmission and Auto Service. It helps street and at-risk youth build careers and live independently.

"Homeless people are stigmatized," Grant explains. That makes it difficult for them to gain the work experience necessary to land a job.

People gave Huynh a chance years ago when he arrived from Vietnam unable to speak English, so he decided to give Lacasse a try. For five weeks, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) grants paid Lacasse's wages. By the sixth week, Huynh was so impressed by Lacasse's commitment and his passion for cars that he took the young man on as an apprentice.

Eight months later, Lacasse wears a neat blue uniform. He describes his job as a Drive Clean emissions tester and auto mechanic apprentice as "perfect." And he has saved enough of his wages to move into a new apartment this month - a big step after years of living on the street, on and off.

"This will be the first real apartment that I've ever had," says Lacasse.

For this young man, the program's reward has been a foot in the door to a new life. For Huynh, who only has one other employee besides Lacasse, it's the opportunity to give someone a fresh start and finding in that person a committed, enthusiastic worker.

Homeless youth aren't the only ones who face barriers to paid employment. So do new immigrants such as Pooja Handa, 25, who arrived from India three years ago. Fresh off the plane and from commerce and computer studies, she knew others like herself who'd had great trouble finding work. "Everyone asks for Canadian experience," she says, "which I didn't have."

A youth organization referred her to the Targeted Wage Subsidies program (TWS), through which HRSDC funds 40 to 60 per cent of an employee's wages for up to six months. The program is currently run in the GTA by the Young Men's Christian Association and the Jewish Vocational Service.

Being in the TWS program got Handa an interview with Lorne Ordel, president of Sales Dynamics, Inc. The Toronto company makes promotional products ranging from hats to mugs to key chains. Ordel, 60, has been hiring employees through programs such as TWS for 25 years. Handa's unfamiliarity with Canadian culture made her shy and timid, she recalls. But Ordel saw her potential and gave her a job.

At first, Handa remained shy, disoriented by local workplace norms, such as calling the boss by his first name instead of "sir." But she did well as an assistant in the company's 12-person office, and after four months, Ordel made her a receptionist - a harrowing position that Handa held for two months, growing more confident each day.

"Over those two months," Ordel recalls, "a new Pooja emerged."

When the subsidy ended, Ordel decided to hire Handa full-time. She has now become a capable assistant to the vice-president of sales and marketing. Says Ordel, "We've come to depend on her."

Small businesses such as Ordel's and Huynh's are consistently the greatest supporters of targeted employment programs. Small and medium-sized businesses are the main employers in the TWS program, says Barbara Williams, manager of the YMCA's Small Business Centre on Charles St. And small businesses comprise over two-thirds of the work placements Eva's Phoenix has made in the past three years, says Grant.

Though most businesses participating in targeted employment programs are solicited based on the potential employee's interests, Williams and Grant both say they welcome businesses to approach them also.

Working in a small enterprise is often good for the employees. "They don't get lost," says Grant, who adds jobs in small companies also tend to be less specialized, so employees may learn a wider range of skills.

Grant suggests small businesses participate more eagerly in such programs because their hiring protocols are more flexible and because an extra employee on a wage subsidy makes more of a positive difference to them.

Some programs don't offer any subsidy at all, and instead have participants who voluntarily work for free, such as some mandatory college internships or programs for the disabled.

"What we're trying to express to the students is this is a stepping stone towards your career and a lot of good contacts are made from working in your field," says Danny Stone, externship co- ordinator for the faculty of hospitality and tourism at George Brown College. He says it would be impossible to find paid placements for all 800 students in the faculty who require one each year.

Ferd Schroeder, who owns six local McDonald's franchises, has taken unpaid volunteers with disabilities through organizations such as Toronto Community Living. "We're trying to teach them some life skills, but it goes beyond that." Performing useful tasks also helps the volunteers build confidence and self-esteem, he adds.

However, business owners who participate in targeted employment programs warn that those in it for cheap or free labour will be disappointed.

"I don't benefit financially from it," says Schroeder, noting that the placement of a special needs individual never displaces someone else who might have been hired.

Some past TWS employees have come to Ordel with challenges such as inappropriate behaviour and poor grooming. While organizations such as the YMCA offer ongoing support, participating in their programs requires patience, says Ordel, and employers' expectations should be modest. "I learned over the years that if I took them with very little and returned them to the workplace with a chance of finding a job - some improvement - that was all I should expect."

Neither are the programs meant to be a source of temporary labour, organizers say. It is hoped the employer will hire the employee after the subsidy runs out, as Huynh and Ordel have done. Schroeder recently also hired a former volunteer - an older man recovering from a stroke that damaged his memory and motor skills.

However, Grant understands not every business can afford to do that, and most people agree the employee benefits even if they're not kept on after the program is over. "They're going to get a great reference letter from somebody who is well-known in their industry," says Stone.

What targeted employment programs can offer to employers are pre- screened candidates who are usually eager. Often, program co- ordinators handle all the paperwork. And employers get a test drive of a potential employee, says Stone. Sometimes, they find gems among them, such as Lacasse and Handa.

But many of the greatest rewards are the less tangible ones, such as the chance to give back to the community.

Credit: Special to the star