Posted September 10, 2021
It would be an 18-month search with many setbacks. “It was such a patronising experience,” Ms Chong said. “My skills, profession and my dignity were trampled all over. I’d learnt an important lesson though: It’s never a good time to disclose [a disability], but any delay will just complicate things further because it’s detrimental to building trust.”
Posted August 27, 2021
A significant proportion of the workforce is balancing parenting and/or caring responsibilities. However, traditional workplace structures have failed to keep up with workers’ attempts to balance work and family life and leave behind outdated, gendered divisions of ‘breadwinner’ and ‘home-maker’. This snapshot report shares the results of a survey of 1500 Victorians about their experiences with flexible work during the pandemic and how employers can better support parents and carers in the post-COVID workplace.
Posted August 27, 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic compounded existing inequalities for workers with disability, leaving many of them feeling stretched, stressed and unfairly treated. However, the unprecedented move to remote and flexible work during the pandemic also created opportunities to better understand how flexible work arrangements can support people with disability to access and participate meaningfully in the workplace. … Continued
Posted August 26, 2021
Disability advocates have long pushed to get more people with intellectual disability into mainstream employment, given the better wages and greater sense of community involvement. But to turn things around, it’s important to first understand why it’s so difficult for people with intellectual disability to land a job.
Posted June 15, 2021
Trenbath says the disability employment provider seemed to only see her cerebral palsy, not her academic achievements and job skills. “They thought that because I was disabled that I was on welfare, and they didn’t need to find me a job, that they could just take their time,” Trenbath said. “I’ve never been on welfare and I don’t get any NDIS funding, so I have to work. I not only want to work, I need to work to be financially independent … I don’t want to rely on government funding.”
Posted May 7, 2021
As a nation, Australia has one of the lowest disability employment rates among OECD members, sitting within the bottom ten, and campaigners have long called for robust action to improve the accessibility in workplaces across the country.
Posted April 23, 2021
In Australia, many employees are living with a disability as part of their daily life. By providing the right support, employers can instil inclusive workplace practices and enhance diversity.
Posted April 16, 2021
Disability Employment Services (DES) were singled out and concerns were raised about their design and implementation. Some responses said the very service that was established to help people with disability find and keep a job, is falling far short of what it was set up to do. Responders described how some DES consultants didn’t have specialised disability knowledge or qualifications, and didn’t act in their client’s best interest.
Posted April 16, 2021
She felt the reason it took so long for her to gain employment after being open about her diagnosis was because of the negative preconceptions hiring managers had about it.
“The biggest barrier by far is mindset,” Ms McKay said. “Employers have to have the mindset that autism is a completely normal, natural human thing that is welcome in the workplace. It’s not a problem to be solved. It’s not some risk. It’s not an issue. It’s just a different set of needs that just need different considerations.”
Posted April 6, 2021
Requesting workplace adjustments, flexible working arrangements, or modified equipment in the workplace is a tough gig. It is even more difficult for those who are the only disabled person on their team or in their workplace – that is, almost all disabled people.
Posted April 1, 2021
Like many parents, Jonathan Wenig was concerned about his daughter’s career path after she left school last year. Tali, 20, who has autism, faced more than the usual challenges in finding a job that would suit her.
Posted March 19, 2021
You’ve already been told by your potential employer that your resumé is the best they have ever seen. The employer has every intention of giving you the job. The interview is just a formality. But, when you arrive for the interview, you find yourself unable to enter the building. Because of this, no matter how perfect you are for the position, you won’t get the job.
Posted February 19, 2021
The European Space Agency (ESA) is seeking new astronauts for the first time in a decade and wants to recruit one person with a disability. At a briefing held today, ESA experts and astronauts discussed the selection criteria for the four to six astronauts who are needed. The agency said it was keen to improve its record on diversity and inclusion and wants one of the new recruits to have a disability – a “parastronaut”.
Posted December 11, 2020
Yuri Sianski has spent the last 25 years trying to find a job — and his father has told the disability royal commission the situation is a “shameful cul-de-sac of neglect”.