At DreamWorker we have a deep rooted philosophy regarding every single unemployed person who walks through our doors …
Nobody leaves without a gift.

Sometimes that gift is a kind touch. Sometimes it is a pearl of advice. Sometimes it is simply being listened to. And in Aslam de Cerff’s case, it is the gift of a driver’s licence!

Aslam arrived at our offices having been unemployed for over a year. During that time he had suffered further personal loss in the form of having his personal belongings stolen, including his driver’s licence. Aslam was in a place of despair.

When DreamWorker received a request for a qualified glassfitter, our interviewer, Zuleigha immediately thought of Aslam. His track record in working with glass installations of every kind, was perfect. But the job required someone with a driver’s licence. And Aslam, being unemployed, did not have the money required to get a duplicate licence.

No trouble to DreamWorker, it was time to really go the extra mile. Not only did we fund his licence, but our office manager, Tania Sisam, drove him down to Hillstar and waited in the long queue with him!

Aslam was interviewed and he got the job. But that was not the real gift. The real gift was that he was treated with love and respect and dignity. That somebody cared enough to go out of their way to help him.

Aslam is the proud father of two sons and a baby daughter. His long term dream is to be a stable income earner, to provide a better roof over his family’s head and to ensure his children have a good education.

On Monday 12 September, Aslam started work as a driver and motor glass fitter. He is really excited to be working full time again and can’t wait for his first salary cheque the first in a long, long time. “I am going to treat my family. Maybe McDonald’s, maybe Kentucky. But it will be a family feast all right!”.

He ends our conversation with a message for all the people at DreamWorker. “You will never know how happy you made me and how you have changed my life. I really did not believe there were people out there who still cared for the unemployed. I was very down. I wanted to give up. But I have work again and I have hope. Thank you, thank you.”