Zoersel –
The first batch of ’employees fast food’ also received his diploma this week. Jaisy Verheyen (21) from Zoersel can not only perfectly prepare and serve a Giant, but is also proud of her job and grown as a person. Local Quick Manager Lars De Smet rewarded her with a permanent contract at the Schilde location.
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‘t Lommert in Schoten is one of the fifteen schools in special secondary education that two years ago accepted the offer of then education minister Hilde Crevits (CD&V) and Horeca Forma, the training organization of and for the catering sector, to start with the new towards ‘fast food employee’. This is done according to the dual learning formula, whereby young people divide their learning time between the school and the workplace.
–Photo: Jan Auman
“Two students started with us. One has dropped out en route. But Jaisy, who was able to work in Quick Schilde, has continued well, “said her counselor Peter Haesendonckx. “She came to school with us two days a week. The other three days Jaisy worked in the team of Lars De Smet and for that she received a salary that amounted to 580 euros in the last integration phase. She started with a certain learning disability and little confidence in this process, but we have seen her grow and blossom quickly. ”
–Photo: Jan Auman
Jaisy poses proudly with her diploma in the polo shirt with the red Q. Then she gives us a behind the scenes tour of the fast food restaurant, where she now blindly knows her way around and enjoys the respect of all colleagues. The girl takes the opportunity to check the temperature of the fryer and quickly prepares a double cheeseburger for consumption. She puts the sandwich on the famous hamburger slide so that her colleagues at the counter can serve it.
“If it is not sold after twenty minutes, it must be irrevocably put in the bin. The Quick rules are strict, but I know them all by heart, as do the extra precautions since Corona, ”assures Jaisy, who occasionally likes a Giant. “Not a big vacation for me. Tomorrow morning I will be back here, but then as a permanent employee. But I don’t mind at all. On the contrary. I have never reluctantly put on this uniform. ”
Win-win
Peter Haesendonckx from buso ‘t Lommert thinks the fast food experiment is successful and hopes to convince KFC in Wijnegem to take care of one of his students. Horeca Forma, which screens the internships, is also positive about the first two years of this new direction of dual learning in buso.
“In the beginning we were a bit skeptical because the employer also had to invest in the training of the student and we were afraid of a high dropout rate. But the facts now contradict that ”, says Horeca Forma director Robin Vanderelst. “Less than 20% of young people drop out and employers have found a new sustainable channel to recruit, making this a win-win situation.”
–Photo: Jan Auman
“ Since we started in 2018, we have already supported 82 young people. It is a good thing that next school year thirty-five schools will now offer the fast food employee training course. And the catering industry once again confirms that it is an inclusive and diverse sector. ”
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