When the IAM Union communications team visited IAM Cares – AIM CROIT in Montreal, they expected to learn about employment services. What they discovered was something far more powerful; a vibrant community working every day to restore confidence, dignity, and purpose to people living with sensory and physical disabilities.

At first glance, the office looks like any other: staff gathered in morning huddles, employees focused on computer screens, quiet one-on-one coaching sessions in progress. But behind the scenes is a team dedicated to one mission: breaking isolation and helping Montrealers with physical and sensory disabilities find their way back into the workforce.

Patronized by IAM Union and funded 100% by Service Québec, IAM Cares – AIM CROIT offers free, personalized support to citizens, permanent residents and refugees of Montreal aged 16 and up.

Clients live with a wide range of sensory, physical and invisible disabilities: from amputations and diabetes to chronic pain. For many, isolation is a bigger barrier than any resume gap.

That’s where AIM CROIT steps in.

Led primarily by women, the staff includes employment counsellors, partnership coordinators, trainers, and admin support who guide clients through every step of their journey. Services include personalized coaching, resume building, career planning, and access to a fully equipped computer lab. In their multiservice training rooms, clients not only build skills, they build confidence.

“People often come to us feeling disconnected,” said Executive Director Christina Cobein during the IAM Union team’s visit. “We’re here to help them reconnect: with work, with routine, and with their own sense of purpose.“

This year, IAM Cares – AIM CROIT celebrates its 35th anniversary! A milestone marking decades of dedication. Over the years, they’ve helped thousands of individuals find meaningful employment. But their true impact goes far beyond job placement: by providing structure, community and quite often, mental support, IAM Cares – AIM CROIT empowers people to regain their independence and envision a brighter future.

IAM Cares – AIM CROIT isn’t just helping people find work, it’s transforming lives, creating opportunities, and proving every day that inclusion works.

Brian Bryant, International President of the 600,000-member IAM Union (International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers), and David Chartrand, IAM Canadian General Vice President, issued the following statement following President Trump’s announcement on pausing most tariffs for 90 days:  

“As the largest aerospace and defense labor union in the United States and Canada, the IAM Union believes that we should take the next 90 days to help chart a path forward that will benefit workers. We must put an end to the constant anxiety of job losses due to tariff threats between allies. We continue to offer a space for all stakeholders – government, business and labor – to come together to forge a real, comprehensive strategy to protect and grow critical manufacturing here in the United States and Canada while punishing the bad actors across the globe. Workers deserve the right to drive policy conversations about their livelihoods. Working people should be at the table, not on the menu.”   

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) is one of North America’s largest and most diverse industrial trade unions, representing approximately 600,000 active and retired members in the aerospace, defense, airlines, railroad, transit, healthcare, automotive, and other industries across the United States and Canada.