Ep. 3: VjobReady: Virtual Reality-Based Job Training in the Disability Sector Gets Real

Virtual reality (VR) is mostly known as the realm of gamers. But now — in Ontario, at least — it’s about to burst on the scene in the disability employment sector.

Initially, starting at the end of September (through to the middle of March 2022), VR technology called VjobReady is going to be used to help 160 Ontario job seekers who have a disability get a feel for what it’s like to work in the food and hospitality sector.

And it’s kind of neat that the employment service provider behind the development of this VR training application, is one of ODEN’s members.

Career Services of Brockville in Brockville, ON, spent the last three years building this first iteration of VjobReady. They knew they had something important, innovative and significant, right from the start.

On July 6, their efforts literally paid off big. The Ontario Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development awarded Career Services of Brockville a $380,000 grant.

In this episode, we talk with Career Services of Brockville Executive Director Cynthia Sparring, and Corporate Engagement Specialist Chad Noonan, about what this all means for job seekers, businesses, job training, and VjobReady future research and development.