By George Nostrand, GCEPD member
Tripling your business during a challenging economy is impressive to start with. Doing so with a company that was getting ready to file for bankruptcy and close its doors is even more amazing. Jessica Dennison has done all this and more with a workforce of people with disabilities.
Jessica is the owner of Vermont Manufacturing Services in Rutland, a provider of custom, sub-contract manufacturing solutions for all varieties of outsourcing and fulfillment needs. Their mission is to provide employment to as many individuals with disabilities as possible.
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| Jessica Dennison |
Reflecting on her recent success, Jessica admits that her own perceptions of people with disabilities were limited at first. "I thought first of people with significant physical disabilities and assumed they were limited in what they could do." What she found was, with some support and encouragement, her workers were very able.
In talking with Jessica it's clear she is proud of the work they do at Vermont Manufacturing. "We take pride in our employees. They are grateful for a job and a chance to show their worth. I hope businesses will learn about what we do beyond just offering work to people with disabilities."
Along that vein she recently chased down Governor Shumlin at a Business Expo. to share some of her story with him.
" Yes, I chased him down. People don't know what we do. We are one of the only ones that do what we do - having a staff of people with disabilities. People are skeptical of us and what we do. There are a lot of stereotypes left over from Rutland Industries. We don't just do simple tasks like putting a piece in a bag. We do intricate work like CNC and assembly of the Alpine Slides. We want to keep evolving to include more machining work and to meet other needs. Our goal is to have 25 - 50 employees. We also offer very competitive prices."
At this point Vermont Manufacturing has 13 employees, but they are working on contracts that could bring 6 - 30 more full-time and temporary employees. "We recently interviewed twenty people just so we have a hiring pool."
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| Employees of Vermont Manufacturing |
Jessica credits VocRehab with helping her through the hiring process and feels not enough people know about VocRehab and their programs. "Schools should be more aware of the programs. Parents should know what's available. We need to get people more educated. It can be scary when you don't know about working with people who have disabilities. They are capable of being great employees. It's the same risk with anyone you hire qualification-wise. VocRehab and other programs help us find the right fit for the job. I call and tell them what I am looking for, what abilities and skills. It saves time and money. VocRehab will pre-screen people. They send people who are capable. They come in and work for a day or two with people. They will pay initially for a job trial, then hire. This saves a lot including putting people onto payroll without knowing whether they will work out. By the time they've worked here a few days I know whether they will fit. Also if I have an issue I can call VocRehab for three months."
Interestingly enough Jessica has found that often times the labeled disability is not always the biggest challenge to overcome.
"What I noticed when I started working here was that most people had low self-esteem. Since taking over I have tried to push people to try new things, different types of jobs here in the company, to help them see they can do more. Many people were limited in what they were doing in their jobs. We tried to push them to come out of their shells, getting them to do work they think they can't do. People realized they can do more than they thought. I moved one of my workers into a supervisory role. He really takes pride in his work and in advancing in the company."
Jessica shared that she has observed that many times the disability is less of an issue than some of the normal struggles any employee has on the job. VMS recently developed an employee handbook to address some of the issues. "We want to support people and teach them how to act appropriately in the workplace so that they can be successful long-term here, or in their next job.
Jessica is also interested in integrating the workforce so that it is not all people with disabilities. People hired "off the street" will be educated on what people with disabilities are like and address issues around stereotypes. Jessica also means business. "Our goal is to employee people with disabilities, but we will no longer turn down a job if we can't find someone with a disability to fit the job."
"We are about people with disabilities. We are here to help people with disabilities, but that's not all we are. We hire qualified people. If you look at the picture of our staff on our brochure you can't tell they are disabled. I hope people will talk to me about how rewarding it is to have good employees. We have to convince people. I don't do this because I have a disabled family member. I do it because it helps the community and because I realized how capable people are."
You can learn more about Vermont Manufacturing Services at
