Vocational Supports – M.P.D. Inc.

(Manor Personnel Deployment Inc.)

The importance of work for the well-being of people in general is well-established. When we began in 1985 we found that program participants were experiencing limited success accessing traditional employment supports. Research, and our subsequent experience, indicates that people with cognitive handicaps, mental health challenges and ASD have extremely poor track records when it comes to finding and maintaining competitive employment. Further, failure in the work place often results in depression and reluctance to try again. Due to limited vocational support funding we have concentrated on helping our participants form a competitive company – Manor Personnel Deployment Inc. (M.P.D.)

In 1994, with legal advice donated by Gowling, Strathy & Henderson, M.P.D. Inc. was born. It is a ‘service company’ that provides advertising flyer collation, seasonal lawn maintenance and cleaning services for businesses and individuals. It provides work opportunities for people with ASD and mental health challenges. The major advantage of the company is that it can make the many accommodations that are required to maintain people with ASD/mental health difficulties in the work place. MPD is guided by Woodview staff that is paid by Woodview, not by M.P.D. Thus the workers are the sole beneficiaries of their efforts.

Since 2002, M.P.D. has billed over $1 Million in business and paid $750,000 in wages to an average monthly workforce of 50 individuals. There are employee incentive programs as well as social gatherings to celebrate hard work and accomplishments. For most workers this is the first long-term successful job they have had, increasing self-esteem and confidence and income earned adds to their quality of life.