I feel a little silly writing about this subject. A line I heard at my few job interviews, applies to this. ‘I have little to no experience.’ I have no degree. I’ve only had a short internship which was many moons ago, yet I’m writing this blog.
There’re many factors that contribute to the continually low disability employment rate. I will list a few of them. This is my opinion. I may be wrong, I may be right. That’s what a blog is, an opinion.
Lack of access to higher education for people with disabilities
Some people with disabilities may need an aide to write etc for them in class. When I was in K-12 the public school system provided an aide. When I graduated, I had to find my own aides while programs like the VR Pas and the CD Pas paid them via the state. Hiring and keeping an aide even for home care is difficult. I can’t imagine managing an aide for college.
Click Here to read my experiences with personal aides.
Sure, you can earn degrees online. But if I were an employer I wouldn’t want to hire a person coming off as a recluse that has had no interaction with people and no set schedules.
Vocational schools for people with disabilities should offer degrees.
I went to one of these schools that provided me housing and personal care but all I earned for my drafting class was a certificate. This was a state run facility, so that somewhat explains it.
How about offering to the students that can and do want to go to college, work out a tuition program? Students can be housed there and receive the care they need, plus earn a college degree by either hiring accredited teachers onsite, or providing transportation to a nearby college. Vocational schools for people with disabilities may be already doing this I’m not sure.
Acceptance in the workplace
I’m going to make a bold assumption here: Most people are uncomfortable around people with disabilities. It’s one thing to have access to the outside world via the ADA, it’s a completely different thing to be chosen to come into a company to get a job done.
The invisible barriers of awkwardness towards people with disabilities need to come down. Now there’s an interview policy that prevents an interviewer to ask about a disability. Questions can only be asked that verify if the job can be executed in relation to a persons disability. You cannot ask questions about the disability outside of the needs of the job. While I understand that focuses the attention on the job itself and off the disability, I can’t help but wonder if that’s not enough to relieve the awkward feeling.
DRS (Dept of Rehabilitative Services) was in charge of my time in the vocational school and finding me job interviews. They also helped me find funding for Assistive Technology to use on computers. They did a great job until it was time to help find me a job. A few things stand out to me as I look back on it.
It was silly to be promoting somebody without a degree. They saw how smart I was, why not help me go to college to get that degree? When I say help, I mean point me in the right direction of other resources that can help. I don’t mean I expected them to do it for me.
I feel DRS wasted a lot of time job-hunting on my behalf. It was clear employers were less than thrilled when they heard about me. That being said, I think a large division of DRS should focus on Disability Awareness Training for businesses. DRS could come up with a workshop that alleviates the awkwardness the abled-bodied community has towards the disabled community. Knowledge is the antidote to fear of the unknown. I also believe Disabled History and Rights should be taught in schools so future generations can be more open-minded about hiring people with disabilities.
Getting the job done
I feel I’m the same as everybody else and should be given a fair chance. At the same time, I also know I am different. I may do things different than others, and I may take more time than others.
So is it really fair for employers to bend their expectations for me? No. Time is money, money is time.
But if I can do the job on time, then what is the fuss?
I believe employers have a hard time seeing pass people with disabilities transportation schedule, modified workplace, attendants, etc to gauge how well the job will get done. I don’t blame them, it’s a huge leap of faith on their part.
Businesses and for the most part people like their routine. Any change or disruption causes anxiety. Some people with disabilities need modified workplaces, modified work schedules, etc. At worse, some employers must feel hiring a person with a disability detrimental to the health of their company. A glitch in a well oiled machine.
Flexibility goes a long way with hiring people with disabilities. Often I would guess, these so-called glitches would work themselves out in a short period of time. Still the fear of the unknown is there for the employer on the interview.
Actively finding work for people with disabilities
Certainty everybody with a disability can contribute. But why are the Disabled Community continually held to the same standards as the abled-bodied population, when they’re different? Can an employee with a disability accomplish the same job as an abled-bodied employee? The answer is yes at times, but other times it’s no. So why can’t jobs be created for only people with disabilities? I suppose that is very similar to Affirmative Action, which has its good points and bad.
Why can’t the government take a more active role in the high disability unemployment rate? There’re people with disabilities that are using the government’s money to survive who would rather be working. So I would think the government would want to step in more forcibly to save money and see that businesses hire people with disabilities. Wouldn’t tax payers pay less if more people with disabilities worked?
Some hear that and think ‘oh no, a government takeover!’ I do agree the government is overwhelmed as it is and doesn’t need more burdens. I also believe, the high disability unemployment rate is very similar to the 60’s when government stepped in to see that African Americans were ingratiated into public schools. Do you still see the military escorting African American kids to school? No. Very quickly the public schools in the south caught on and obeyed the law.
I don’t like to end my blog like that, because I know some people will see the word ‘government’ and freak out.
The disability employment rate has never risen...as far as I know...so I ask people what ideas do they have?
Click Here to read more of my views on this topic. I've also posted useful employment links there.
Other factors that contribute to the disability unemployment rate are explored in a report by the UCP: The State of Disability in America (pg.36) HERE
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Ivy very well written! I would hire you if I had the power!! You should right for the NYT, or Post. You need to do something like that cause your writting is good and to the point where everyone can understand it. I think you hit on very good points!!
ReplyDeleteConecting Communities do feature my writting. for free thou. but that's fine. actually they helped pushed me to write this. http://connectingcommunities.wordpress.com/
ReplyDeleteand if you like my writings you can always visit my website!
Hey man, I'll tell you my story..
ReplyDeleteMy name is Tom, I live in Indiana. I've been legally blind since birth. I went to the blind school from 10 to 16 years of age, but my junior year mom decided to take me out of the blind school. She thought it would be easier for me to find a job later in life if I graduated from a public school.
From K-4, then junior and senior years, I struggled greatly trying to see the blackboard or overhead projectors. They gave me an aide K,1, and 2, but then 3-4 I didn't have an aide, so they put me in a learning disabilities class for retarded people. Then, when I went to the blind school, they held me back a year. Anyway, I did well at the blind school, but then when I went back to public school, I struggled again trying to get information off the board. I just barely graduated HS because of that, but in college is where I really struggled with that. Professors made fun of me in front of the whole class, and they didn't provide any accomodations other then letting me use a CCTV to blow up information, which I still couldn't read, but the blackboard was the main issue. They wouldn't allow an aide in class unless I paid the money myself to have someone take the class with me. VR was no help in this either. So their only suggestion was to keep taking the classes I failed over and over again until I somehow passed. I retook several classes 6-7 times before passing them, and by then, they don't count them as "retakes" so 7 F's and an A, just as an example, still averages out to be an F.. Despite that though, I went thru the graduation ceremony 7 times, while in the end never actually getting my degree, because I would end up failing my last course at the last minute, and have to take it over again with the same thing happening. I'm an IT major, so I had issues taking the CompTIA A+, Network+, and Microsoft Office Specialist series of exams too, because Ivy Tech, my college, said they could not help me with accomodations for certification testing, because they have their own rules, so even though the college had the accomodations, I could not use them, so not only was I not able to get my college degree, but I wasn't able to get the certifications either. However, I passed CompTIA A+ Essentials, CompTIA A+ IT Technician, and CompTIA Network+ classes with straight A's, so I have the knowledge, if an employer could give me a chance, but so far no such luck. VR hasn't been much help either because they encourage me to stay on disability and just find a part-time minimum wage job somewhere. I'm like, I'm an IT professional, I am better then just some minimum wage job, and besides, computers are my career of choice and VR should honor that, but they don't. My last thought was to forget about my Associates and trying for my Bachelors instead at a different college, that way the classes I did pass will transfer, so I'm going to try that this year, but without a job, I can't afford to go back to school anyway, so I don't know what will end up happening.
I agree with you on the online degrees. With stigma already against persons with disability being able to participate socially , This is more of a set up.
ReplyDeleteMost of those schools have poor placement statistics , some are not even accredited and are money mills.
The only way to use them well is if you are in a job you are not "paper qualified" for and need the diploma to maintain or promote within the same place of employ. And that's only if HR says it will suffice.
The State Dept of Rehabs/ VRs funded to be stepping stones are often one of the biggest roadblocks.
They do discriminate and discrimination can not be addressed as not a part of the appeals process.
Since they fund the CAP advocates and also do not have any procedure to ensure quality there is much conflict, but no accountability.
A domino effect breakdown in the entire system.
For correction, this and more must be addressed under the ADA/504 by a skilled legal advocate and there are none.
Not even the national (legal) Bar Association can identify one attorney who will do
ADA/504 for an individual in a non employer environment.
The anti-stigma commercials are nice, but as long as the state and advocates are a problem and there is no realistic method of repair, no legal advocacy; if you don't have family or the lobbyists for certain disability groups to buy you advocacy and means, your voice is silenced long before it gets to anyone who could create change, and no matter how hard you try against a broken system, alone, your hopes are dashed.
Thanks for your comments. Tom I can really relate to your story. I was very blessed to have a consistent aide thru HS. Our personalities where well matched which was very important. I’m so glad you had the determination to further your education. Sadly I do not. I figure, what’s the point when discrimination against people with disabilities is so high? I do have a fulfilling life so don’t worry about me thou. Our stories we share with countless others. Will there ever be a solution and end to the discrimination?
ReplyDelete