My Tribes and Tribulations of Employment 

Welcome to my latest blog. Today, I am going to talk about my experiences in employment and the importance of being in employment.  Many people are surprised that I have a job and even more surprised when I tell them that I own my own business. Disabled people are twice as likely to be unemployed compared to non-disabled people. There are currently 7.7 million disabled people of working age but only 4.1 million are in employment. Statistics show that disabled women are more likely to be employed than a man who has a disability.

Ever since I was young, I have always wanted to work. It was more challenging than most 16-year-olds would have encountered. I was limited to what I could do.  Working in a shop or café was a massive challenge, – imagine how many mugs, glasses and plates I could drop in one shift? It would have cost my employer more to replace what I broke than he was actually making in profit! I was very adamant that I didn’t want to be on benefits and I wanted to make my own path and be financially stable.

I was lucky enough I had athletics to fall back on in the early days.  I always had the desire to earn my own money from my own achievements and off my own back. When I graduated from university, I knew it would be a challenge to get a  job, but I never imagined how hard it actually was going to be. Some of the issues I counted were due to lack of understanding by potential employers, blinkered vision and being asked “how can you do….” or “will you be able to get up the stairs ok” (I can walk ok, with a few trips that make it fun). I have quite a severe stammer which becomes more noticeable under pressure.  As interviews are very stressful and pressured environments my stammer became more prominent. After many interviews, it became clear that my stammer was an issue for some employers.  More and more the employer would make more reference to my disability rather than my capability of doing the role I had applied for. To this day I still experience discrimination and prejudice. People just can’t see past my Cerebral Palsy, and they miss who I actually am.

So, you ask yourself what has employment done for Claire?  Well, it is quite simple it has given me a purpose in life, allowed me to develop my confidence and skill set. Having a job gives anybody independence, self-worth and some level of financial stability, which allows the person to choose how they live.  This is no different for me. I still have dreams and ambitions and these can only be done with stable employment. It has helped with my resilience levels and seeing things as a challenge. I am not so good at taking praise, but learning to accept praise when it’s given is a skill I have learnt to embrace.  I know don’t always think what is their alternative motive is.

I could go on about the importance of any disabled person having a job. Instead, I would prefer to focus on why employers should have no issues or concerns about employing a disabled person in the future. First of all, an employer cannot discriminate against anybody that has a disability when advertising or interview for a role. It shows that the employer is equality compliant and meets the requirements of the Equality Act 2010. It is said that a disabled person brings something new to an organisation. This could be a new way for people to think, they can see the bigger picture before others.  It could be that a disabled person has the skill set and a way of learning that no other employee demonstrates. A disabled person may think in a different way as they are always having to think outside the box and look for alternative ways to complete things. A disabled employee may show their colleagues what can be achieved while encouraging openness and an inclusive environment in the workplace.  It may drive up standards and effectiveness from other employees.

One of the things that disabled people hear all the time is, employers, think it will cost them more to employ a disabled person.  This is not necessarily right.  There are many initiatives and support packages out there for employers. A few include the continued development of assisted technologies and computer programs. Nowadays there is a wide range of specialist office equipment. All of these could be purchased through a government-funded scheme called the Access To Work. This is a scheme that provides an employer with financial assistance in providing needed equipment. Depending on the needs of the disabled person it could include the costs of a support worker or PA.  This allows the disabled employee to complete their role to the best of their ability. There are also schemes that promote employers and organisations as being disability confident. These are looked for by other organisations when wanting to partner with organisations.

In summary, I want to encourage as many organisations to consider what they could be missing out on.  I challenge organisations and employers to have open minds and eyes to a disabled person that might apply for a role in the future.  Keep in mind that a disabled person may be the missing pieces for your organisation to move forward in a way you never imagined.

We have several development opportunities to support organisations in the area of employment and disability, we offer Equality and Diversity Training, disability specific awareness courses, personal experiences sessions and bringing disability to life through interactive disability awareness courses.

Contact us for more on claire@ability-consultancy.co.uk