Fruit2Work is a registered social enterprise which creates meaningful, sustainable employment opportunities for those impacted by the criminal justice system. The organisation works with local producers and growers to deliver fresh fruit, milk and pantry items to businesses throughout Brisbane, Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast and Victoria. CQUniversity’s Office of Social Innovation sat down with Simon Fenech, Fruit2Work’s General Manager, to discuss the opportunities Fruit2Work provides disadvantaged jobseekers and how the organisation effectively facilitates the success of its highly diverse workforce.

Workforce Diversity at Fruit2Work

All of Fruit2Work’s employees and managers have had some type of lived experience where they have been impacted by the criminal justice system. This is often their own personal experience having been incarcerated but it could also be a family member’s experience or their personal experience as a justice support worker. Fruit2Work also employs people of all genders, cultures and levels of experience.

Throughout our interview with Simon, a number of themes emerged regarding factors for success in attracting, recruiting and retaining a highly diverse workforce.

Outreach for Recruitment

In our discussion with Simon, he spoke about the proactive outreach efforts Fruit2Work takes in order to recruit its employees, particularly within prison systems. The organisation conducts presentations at employment expos and inside prisons to raise awareness about Fruit2Work and foster trusting relationships.

Simon explained, “So as part of the program at Fruit2Work, we actually go inside of the prisons and present at employment expos, we build relationships with the justice system.” By building relationships with people like parole officers, community corrections workers and employment providers, Fruit2Work is able to reach the people who need their support most. “We have parole officers and community corrections that contact us to say hey, we have candidates, or we also speak to employment providers and say who have you got on your books with criminal history.”, said Simon.

Furthermore, the organisation ensures all communication is stigma-free, non-judgmental, and welcoming to individuals with criminal backgrounds, creating an inclusive environment that encourages potential employees to seek help and opportunities.

Transitional Employment

Fruit2Work follows a transitional employment model, meaning people are provided an entrylevel job to develop their skills, confidence and employability in a supported environment. Once they are ready, employees are encouraged to transition out of their supported, entry-level role and into full employment, either with Fruit2Work or in the broader community.

“Fruit2Work is transitional employment, people might stay three, six, nine months, they might stay forever… ideally they would move on to greener pastures and transition back into the community as returning citizens going into full-time work.”, explained Simon. He highlighted this could mean transition to open employment with another company, or it could also mean transition to a new role within Fruit2Work.

Ideally, they would transition out of Fruit2Work and into full-time employment, or they could transition within Fruit2Work. They could start in the warehouse as a pick-packer and then move on to admin or business development.”

Simon Fenech – CEO, Fruit2Work

Continuously Increasing Opportunities

Fruit2Work consistently enhances its capacity to provide meaningful opportunities to disadvantaged jobseekers through its continuous efforts to create new roles, serve a broader range of clients, and increase working hours for its employees. Throughout our interview, Fruit2Work administration employee, Cassie and Steve Williams, CQU Office of Social Innovation Manager. with Simon, he emphasised the significance of expanding opportunities for new employees with Fruit2Work and noted the organisation’s expansion across multiple sites has been pivotal in creating more job opportunities.

“I think the biggest one was the expansion, the expansion over five different sites and making opportunities for people just like me with lived experience.”, said Simon.

We also spoke with Rebecca, Fruit2Work’s business development manager, who spoke about her role and how she creates awareness and visibility of the organisation to increase employment opportunities for its staff. “I’m Rebecca…my role specifically is to create some visibility here…so I guess networking, going out to different networking events, talking about what our mission here at Fruit2Work is and also, more importantly, generating sales for businesses to purchase our fruit and milk so that we can increase our employment hours.”, said Rebecca.

Dedicated Support and Wellbeing Program

Another critical component of Fruit2Work’s success in upskilling and effectively managing their highly diverse workforce is its dedicated support and wellbeing program, Building a Better You. The program focuses on building peoples’ soft skills, resilience, employability and ability to cope with the challenges associated with everyday life in the community. Simon said, “It is all about upskilling people to deal with everyday life as they return to the community as returning citizens.”

Simon explained the program addresses issues which are common for people exiting the criminal justice system, like anxiety, rejection, addiction and loss, which all act as barriers to employment. “To have candidates succeed, Fruit2Work has a program called Building a Better You which deals with loss, worry, rejection, addiction.”, Simon said.

Aids Individuals to Transform Their Lives

The value of Fruit2Work’s diverse workforce goes far beyond those experienced within the organisation. Fruit2Work provides individuals impacted by the criminal justice system the opportunity to re-integrate back into the community, improve their personal circumstances and contribute to society in a meaningful way. We spoke with one of Fruit2Work’s administration employees, Cassie, who spoke about the new lease on life which her role has given her.

“I’m Cassie and I do administration…Fruit2Work aligned with all of my values and what I was looking for after being incarcerated. Every day is challenging, I love that we create chances for people, and it’s given me a chance and a new lease on life.”, said Cassie.

Rebecca, Fruit2Work’s Business Development Manager explained, “The recidivism rate here in Queensland is 50% so every two individuals that come out of prison one will go back. Here at Fruit2Work we’ve managed to, over the last eight years, employ 130 staff and transition them out into the community…and no one in the eight years has gone back to prison. So, we’ve considerably reduced that recidivism rate here just at Fruit2Work alone.” The average cost to taxpayers to incarcerate one person for one year in Australia is $147, 900.00 (Schlicht, 2023), meaning Fruit2Work have already saved Australian taxpayers millions. Rebecca felt this saving to the community is the largest benefit of hiring a diverse workforce.

“The benefit of the of employing people from a diverse background for any social enterprise is the saving to the community”, said Rebecca.

Giving People a Chance is Organisationally Worthwhile

Fruit2Work’s effective management of its highly diverse workforce facilitates the significant associated benefits they experience and is an example for other organisations that giving people a chance can be worthwhile. Simon highlighted that Fruit2Work’s success in rehabilitating people exiting the criminal justice system shows other businesses that giving people a chance is safe for their business and that it pays off.

“A pro-diversity approach for other businesses is to give people with criminal history an opportunity, it gives them a chance to reintegrate back into the society and gives them a second chance at life.”, explained Simon.

He emphasised that people exiting the justice system want to make positive changes to their lives but need to be given the opportunity. “Ideally we really get the message across that it is safe to employ people with criminal history, people do change, they can change, and they do want something different for themselves.”, Simon emphasised.

• • • Giving people a chance pays off.
    • It is safe to employ individuals exiting the justice system.
    • Employing disadvantaged workers benefits the organisation, individuals and the community.
    • Opportunities can be consciously created through proactive strategies.