How to tap the potential of disabled people?

To identify and recruit the best of the talent pool it is important to:

• determine exactly what is needed through job analysis and description, and
• ensure an equitable process of advertising, selection, interviewing and induction.

Job analysis

• To identify what the job entails, determine what is essential and what is only desirable. Being clear about these categories allows for the flexibility to later adjust the job description to the talents and needs people bring to a role.
• Remember that although it may be clear what a job entails, especially if it is a vacancy for an existing position, it is worth reanalysing the job to avoid assumptions which indirectly exclude anyone.

Job description

• Focus on outcomes rather than tasks. Because of the challenges they face in everyday life, disabled people are often good at finding new ways of doing things. Narrowly defining how a task is carried out may exclude someone from finding an innovative, and perhaps better, way to reach the desired outcome.
• Write a clear and complete job description so applicants can assess whether they could fulfil the job requirements.

Person specification

• Specify which skills, qualifications and attributes are essential, preferred or an additional bonus.
• Remember, formal qualifications and previous work experience are not the only indicators of ability, so do not overemphasise these at the expense of other types of experience or personal qualities. Disabled people, like many other applicants, may not have vast work experience but their life experience may have provided them with the required attributes and qualities.
• Beware of the subtle stereotyping which may occur as a mental image of the ideal employee is formed. Learning to think outside preconceived ideas of who can do what is the key to effectively tapping into the skills and energies of the diverse population.
• In identifying the skills needed for the job, beware of sources of indirect discrimination such as the need to lift or for a driver's licence if these are not strictly necessary or are a minimal part of the position.
• Medical requirements directly related to the job could form a legitimate part of the person specification. For example, minimum visual ability and the absence of heart conditions may be requirements of bus or truck drivers.

Advertising

To broaden your base of applicants in a skills-short market consider:

• Using the EEO Employers Group logo or a statement of support of EEO/diversity in job advertisements to show applicants that you will make your selection on the basis of merit. EEO Trust research (2005) found that disabled people find this visible evidence of commitment to EEO helpful.
• Advertising in the disability media.
• Providing a copy of the job advertisement to organisations that cater for disabled people.
• Making job descriptions available by email or in large print.
• Registering jobs with Workbridge.
• Including your fax number and/or email address with the advertisement to enable enquiries from those with hearing impairments.

Using a recruitment consultancy

Ensure that your recruitment consultancy understands the benefits of having a diverse workforce and is committed to recruitment on the basis of EEO/diversity. A good starting point in selecting a suitable consultancy is to choose a member of the EEO Employers Group. If the consultancy is a corporate member of the Recruitment and Consulting Services Association, their business has been endorsed as complying with all legislative requirements.

Top

Selection

Gathering information

• Consider asking a disabled person to be involved with short-listing, interviewing and selecting candidates. Be sure to brief them on the recruitment procedure and have them participate in the whole process, not just the interviews of disabled candidates.
• Ensure the application form is available in large type, or electronically for people with visual impairments.
• Only ask for information that is directly relevant to the job and the candidate's ability to do it. Don't ask general questions seeking a list of all disabilities, limitations or health problems, whether the applicant has received psychiatric care or been hospitalised, or for a complete  ACC history.
• Where recruitment requires a selection test, it may be necessary to offer an alternative test format or make particular arrangements - for example, to trial the work involved to see if the person can do it.

Interviews

• Before the interview, ask short-listed applicants if they have any particular needs for the interview. For a disabled person this may include an accessible car park, sighted guide, or rearranging furniture to accommodate a wheelchair, for example.
• Applicants should only be asked about their ability to perform the tasks relating to the job they are applying for.
• Ask if the applicant has any condition that may affect how they do the job and what accommodation, if any, they need to enable them to perform the tasks.
• Interviewers can ask (for accident insurance purposes) whether the applicant has or has had an injury or medical condition caused by gradual process, disease or infection, such as hearing loss, sensitivity to chemicals, or repetitive strain injuries which the tasks of the job may aggravate or further contribute to.
• Medical examinations should be conducted only in regard to conditions related to job duties.
• Avoid assumptions about what disabled people can and can't do. Even if someone on the interview panel knows a person with a similar condition, avoid jumping to conclusions about the candidate you are considering for a job.

Decision-making

• Take into consideration the personal skills and qualities disabled people acquire to manage the practical difficulties of living in a world that seldom takes their needs into account.

Top

Accommodating a disabled person

You won't necessarily need to make special accommodations if you employ a disabled person but, as well as being legally obliged to make reasonable accommodations, employers will get the best from all workers, including disabled people, if they provide a safe, effective working environment which encourages productivity and creativity.

Special accommodations may be organisational (such as redistributing tasks and workload), structural (such as lowering the height of a workbench or putting in a wheelchair ramp), or technological (such as installing new computer software). Supported employment agencies can work with employers and employees to identify useful accommodations.

Steps to take to implement these changes

• Discuss any workplace accommodations required with the new employee well before they start work.
• Plan ahead - time may be needed to source equipment and expertise.
• Consult with the  Department of Labour Health and Safety if there are concerns about safety and health issues for the disabled person or other workers.
• It may help to arrange a pre-start visit for the new employee to smooth the process of adapting the workplace and give the person a chance to familiarise themselves with adaptations they may need to make to their working methods.
• Ensure access to toilet and catering facilities is adequate and allow time for any necessary modifications to be carried out. It is important that the new employee is able to participate equally in all aspects of the work environment - the social and personal as well as the directly work-related.

Funding may be available for some accommodations to assist with workplace modifications, special equipment required because of a disability, job coaches and/or mentors, interpreter services, productivity allowances, additional transport costs and a support person/note-taker.

Funding sources

• The Job Support fund to meet the costs of disability in open employment where a person is earning the minimum wage or more.
• A  Work and Income Modification Grant to pay for changes to the workplace, equipment, or access to buildings to enable employers to recruit disabled people.
• The Mainstream Supported Employment Programme to assist disabled people into long-term supported employment within New Zealand's public sector.

Induction

• As with any new employee, a proper welcome and introduction gets things off to a good start.
• Ensure everyone is clear about roles, responsibilities and expectations.
• All the usual induction and support processes of the organisation such as seminars, visits, and text material should also be available to a disabled person. Check that written material is accessible to those with a visual impairment.
• Make sure emergency procedures take account of your new employee and that everyone is familiar with them. Discuss with the new employee what their needs are in this respect.
• As with all staff, implement a regular review process. This creates an opportunity for the new worker to raise any issues and enables the reviewer to make sure the person's skills are being used effectively and also encourage, constructively criticise and support him or her. The process should not just address the employee's performance, but also such things as whether the accommodations are working well.
• If there are several disabled people in the workplace, create an opportunity for them to set up a support network or forum.

Training and development

All employees, including disabled people, need to have their training and career development needs taken seriously.

You can help ensure disabled people have the opportunity to reach their potential and contribute effectively at work by:

• Assigning a mentor when she or he joins the organisation. This may be another disabled person who is more senior or with considerable experience in the organisation, or it may be someone without a disability who can support and encourage the new employee.
• Ensuring disabled employees have career goals and a plan to move towards those.
• Carrying out a training needs analysis on arrival and annually thereafter.
• Ensuring training offered to a disabled person is in a style and format to suit their needs. For example, don't expect a person with vision impairment to watch a training video.
• Recognising different ways of doing things in performance appraisals.

Technology

New technology has created new opportunities for many disabled people. Ways technology can assist disabled people include:

• Large-print options onscreen and a large screen for those with visual impairments.
• Screen readers for people with print-related difficulties.
• Video for people who are pre-lingually deaf and who use sign language.
• Loop and other electronic assistance for hearing-impaired people.