A COFFEE shop worker on work placement met the State Minister for Education and Tourism, Kate Jones, this week.

Shanna Malone was working at Oscars on Sydney Street when the Minister, along with Member for Mackay Julianne Gilbert, dropped by for a coffee.

Ideal Placements, a disability employment service had found the post at Oscars for Ms Malone.

Ms Jones praised the work placement scheme.

You get a lot of dignity out of work,” she said.

Ms Gilbert said the work placements were a great idea.

"Carroll's Newsagency do a lot of this kind of work as well, they put so much back into the community.

"They always have at least one person with a disability on staff and they put them through a kind of traineeship.

"From there, because they're in a nice safe environment, they then go on to get more permanent work at other places.”

"You often see Ideal Placements workers in cafes, sometimes they are over at Porters, wrapping up the knives and forks,” Ms Gilbert said.