Plain English journalist summary on employment
PLAIN ENGLISH – Getting a job
Most people with intellectual disabilities want jobs.
Sometimes they need extra help to learn the skills to get the jobs they want.
Research about Australian Disability Enterprises (ADE’s) found that people are still not getting jobs.
This can be because staff in ADE’s (job coaches) don’t teach job skills in ways that people with intellectual disabilities understand.
ADE job coaches don’t always use the job training strategies that we know work for people with intellectual disabilities because:
- They do not have enough training.
- They do not know how positive behaviour support can help some people when they are working.
- They do not know how to train employers how to use storyboards to help people with intellectual disabilities to do their job.
- They do not have enough training in communicating with people with intellectual disabilities who do not talk.
- They can’t get funding to buy technology like iPads or phones for people who learn best by watching videos or looking at pictures.
We need more research about the best ways to help people with intellectual and learning disabilities to learn job skills.
Job coaches need time to learn how to help people with intellectual and learning disabilities get jobs and do them well.
People with intellectual disabilities also want enough time to learn the skills they need to be good at their jobs.
Job coaches and workers with intellectual disabilities both need good training to do their jobs well.
This is a link for the article about this research: Nature and extent of on-the-job training for employees with an intellectual disability: a pilot study, Research and Practice in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
ASID is an organisation that makes disability research easier to access for people with intellectual disabilities, researchers, and service providers. Go to the ASID website for information about ASID, or to become a member: https://asid.asn.au/
[1] Australia uses the term intellectual disability and New Zealand uses the term learning disability.
On-the-job training failing employees with intellectual disability
While many people with intellectual or learning disabilities want to work, some employees are missing out on developing their skillsets due to poor training programs and procedures.
In Australian Disability Enterprises (ADEs) outcomes for people with intellectual disability are poor because they are not being provided with opportunities to develop new skills, despite reporting that they are eager to learn.
Many strategies are shown to increase technical skills and improve changes in behaviour for people with intellectual disability such as Gold’s “Try Another Way” approach, however research shows staff are not implementing the training they have learned.
From the multiple different strategies staff are taught to train people with intellectual disability, only two strategies were utilised by all staff regularly. They mostly relied on the “show-and-tell” method, where the trainer shows and tells the employee what to do, then watches and corrects by repeating the showing, telling, and correcting until the task is learnt.
In Nature and extent of on-the-job training for employees with an intellectual disability: a pilot study, Research and Practice in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, June Alexander, Jerry Ford, Parimala Raghavendra and Julie Clark say ADE staff reported several reasons for not using the recommended training strategies:
- There was a lack of instruction and opportunity to practise utilising the strategies
- Positive behaviour support was seen as being too difficult to implement
- The use of pictures or storyboards weren’t used because pictures get damaged in the workplace environment
- Funding was not given to buy iPads to be utilised for the pictures or storyboards
- Video modelling was not being used because of the perceived time and effort it took to make a video; staff being unfamiliar with the strategy; and technical problems with the equipment
- Self-instruction was not used because not all the employees with disabilities could use natural speech.
In Commentary on “Nature and extent of on-the-job training for employees with an intellectual disability: A pilot study” Neil Kirby says more research should take place to determine whether workplace trainers are being taught the correct methods of teaching and are being given enough time to practice implementing these specialised techniques.
He also says there needs to be more research to determine if people with intellectual disabilities have lower workplace achievements and quality of life within their community due to the lack of proper training in ADE settings.
When employment training for people with intellectual disabilities is customised to the individual, it is shown to be effective, and that people with significant disabilities can learn the necessary skills if they’re given relevant support and time to learn the new skills.
But people with intellectual disabilities say their training time is too short, and they don’t have enough time to learn what is being taught.
With both trainers and employees being shown the right techniques and given an appropriate amount of support and time to learn these techniques, everyone will benefit.
Further reading:
The Australasian Society for Intellectual Disability (ASID) is a peak body in intellectual disability which promotes research to inform and influence good practice and policy to achieve a society where people with intellectual disability are afforded the same rights and opportunities as everyone. Information and membership details can be found on the ASID website https://asid.asn.au/
ASID owns two international academic journals published through Taylor & Francis: Journal of Intellectual & Developmental Disability (JIDD) and Research and Practice in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (RAPIDD). ASID members have access to these journals as part of their membership.
To increase the accessibility of research, this article synthesises the key messages from an article and commentary piece published in 2018 in RAPIDD related to employment of people with intellectual disability.
PLAIN ENGLISH – Work programs are not helping people with an intellectual disability to get work
You have to make a choice about what to do when you leave school.
This is a big decision. It is no different for people with intellectual disabilities.
People with intellectual disabilities have the same goals as everyone else. They want to get work they like and makes them happy.
Getting a job is good for you. It means you have money to spend, you feel useful, and you get to meet other people.
Yet people with intellectual disability are still not able to get a job. People do not see the value of having people with an intellectual disability in their workplace.
Transition to Work programs are developed to support people when they leave school. The programs help to develop the skills and qualifications. These can help you get work.
An evaluation of employment outcomes achieved by transition to work service providers in Sydney, Australia by Tianxi Xu and Roger J. Stancliffe shows that many of these programs are not working. Only half of the people finishing the two-year program find work.
The Transition to Work programs aim to help a lot of people who leave school. Many of these programs get funding every year. Researchers have looked at what happens in these programs over 5 years. They say that the programs are not helping people with an intellectual disability.
Something different needs to be done. New programs need to be funded.
People with intellectual disability are losing out. This is not good. They are missing out on having money. They miss out on having something useful to do. They miss out on meeting other people.
For more information read An evaluation of employment outcomes achieved by transition to work service providers in Sydney, Australia.
ASID is an organisation in Australia and New Zealand. ASID makes research easier to access for people with intellectual/learning disability[1], researchers, and service providers. ASID does this so that people know about good practice and policy. It wants a society where people with intellectual/learning disability have the same rights and opportunities as everyone. Information and membership details can be found on the ASID website https://asid.asn.au/
ASID owns two international academic journals published through Taylor & Francis: Journal of Intellectual & Developmental Disability (JIDD) and Research and Practice in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (RAPIDD). ASID members get access to these journals.
To increase who finds out about research, this article has key messages from a 2019 JIDD published article about employment of people with intellectual/learning disability.
[1] Australia uses the term intellectual disability and New Zealand uses the term learning disability.
Transition to Work programs not delivering employment outcomes
The end of high school marks an important period in a young adult’s life. One of the big decisions they must make is around the kind of job or career they would like to have after finishing school. This decision is no different for people with intellectual or learning disabilities.
People with intellectual disabilities have the same goals to work in meaningful and stable jobs like everyone else, and to get work suited to their skillsets and interests.
Getting a job is crucial for economic security, personal wellbeing, and social inclusion.
Yet it is evident that people with intellectual disability are still being overlooked and undervalued in the job market.
With the barriers people with intellectual disability often face getting jobs, Transition to Work programs have been established to support school leavers develop the skills and qualifications they need to apply for jobs and get work.
But An evaluation of employment outcomes achieved by transition to work service providers in Sydney, Australia by Tianxi Xu and Roger J. Stancliffe shows that many of these programs are failing school leavers with intellectual disability, with only half of graduates gaining work after completing the two-year program. Of the other half, the employment outcome not only included those with a job in open employment, but also those who gained work in sheltered employment (ADE), and those who had joined a DES and did not actually have a job.
With hundreds of school leavers entering Transition to Work programs each year, there are serious concerns that some of these programs are consistently failing to gain employment for their clients.
Five years of data show that many of the service providers that didn’t achieve employment for any of their clients over that period still received government funding each year.
A lack of action from regulators in allowing service providers with extremely poor results to continue to receive funding is unacceptable.
Questions must be asked about how service providers with a record of little or no employment outcomes, not only can continue to enrol new clients, but also continue to be funded.
Because ultimately, with service providers operating programs with no employment prospects, it is people with intellectual disability who are losing out.
Losing out on economic security, losing out on personal wellbeing, and losing out on social inclusion.
For more information read An evaluation of employment outcomes achieved by transition to work service providers in Sydney, Australia.
The Australasian Society for Intellectual Disability (ASID) is a peak body in intellectual disability which promotes research to inform and influence good practice and policy to achieve a society where people with intellectual disability are afforded the same rights and opportunities as everyone. Information and membership details can be found on the ASID website https://asid.asn.au/
ASID owns two international academic journals published through Taylor & Francis: Journal of Intellectual & Developmental Disability (JIDD) and Research and Practice in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (RAPIDD). ASID members have access to these journals as part of their membership.
To increase the accessibility of research, this article synthesises the key messages from a 2019 JIDD published article related to employment of people with intellectual disability.
How governments and organisations can change strategies to hire more people with intellectual disability
People with intellectual and learning disabilities experience higher unemployment rates, despite the value they add to a workplace. Studies show this number is close to 35 per cent in Australia, and that the proportion of adults with an intellectual disability employed in the mainstream labour force has not increased since 1995.
When people with intellectual disability have jobs where they receive the right training and support, their job retention rate is higher than the national average. Hiring diverse employees improves customer engagement and broadens the range of experience in the workforce. On top of this, co-workers and managers also report positive changes in their own attitudes towards people with disability and have higher levels of social involvement with supported employees.
So why are the same people who are shown to be committed to their work and who improve engagement finding it so much harder to get jobs than the wider population?
Improving access to open employment for people with disability has been a priority in Australia for several decades. The NDIS Participant Employment Strategy for 2019 – 2022 states one of the major goals is to have 30 per cent of NDIS participants of working age to be in paid work by 30 June 2023.
Despite this, many adults with intellectual disability remain either unemployed or in supported employment programs, with growth in open employment limited.
Emerging trends affecting future employment opportunities for people with intellectual disability: The case of a large retail organisation by Katherine Moore, Paula McDonald, and Jennifer Bartlett shows this is due to several factors.
Why organisations aren’t hiring people with intellectual disability
Organisations have moved towards streamlining their recruitment through web-based platforms, which is a big barrier for people with intellectual disability. Online processes limit opportunities for face-to-face negotiations between specialised disability employment services and store managers, which was found to be essential for successful employment outcomes. Shortlisting decisions are also more likely to be based on skill matching to the role rather than consideration for diversity management strategies.
Another crucial factor are the advances in technology to make more efficient work systems, which have resulted in prioritising productivity over workplace diversity. This means routine tasks that have previously been undertaken by people with intellectual disability have been replaced with automation. This also means there is greater opportunity for managers to legitimise not employing people with intellectual disability, as they may be perceived to be less efficient.
These findings are reflected in the New Zealand Government’s Disability Employment Action Plan, which identifies many other barriers people with disability face gaining employment including:
- Poor customisation of jobs to match skills and abilities
- Disability support needs unable to be met at work
- Lower education attainment or access to inclusive education
- Limited opportunities for supported work experience and training.
How can these issues be addressed?
Addressing these issues isn’t just a case of disability-inclusive recruitment practices and providing a target number of employment opportunities, as this would represent only a small step toward addressing the problem of the low employment rate for people with intellectual disability.
What constitutes effective support in obtaining and maintaining employment for individuals with intellectual disability? A scoping review by Cindy Cheng, Jodi Oakman, Christine Bigby, Ellie Fossey, Jillian Cavanagh, Hannah Meacham, and Timothy Bartram shows that both governments and organisations can implement strategies to improve open employment participation for adults with intellectual disability, including:
- Having more collaboration with specialised disability employment services and job coaches
- An increase not only in training for adults with intellectual disability, but also their co-workers
- A mix of both face-to-face and computer-based or video training for job tasks
- Teaching how to set work-related goals and creating action plans
- Self-regulating work behaviour using checklists of frequently used words to prompt job tasks
- Developing work activities that could be completed efficiently by employees with intellectual or learning disabilities.
Further reading:
NDIS Participant Employment Strategy for 2019 – 2022
New Zealand Government’s Disability Employment Action Plan
The Australasian Society for Intellectual Disability (ASID) is a peak body in intellectual disability which promotes research to inform and influence good practice and policy to achieve a society where people with intellectual disability are afforded the same rights and opportunities as everyone. Information and membership details can be found on the ASID website https://asid.asn.au/
ASID owns two international academic journals published through Taylor & Francis: Journal of Intellectual & Developmental Disability (JIDD) and Research and Practice in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (RAPIDD). ASID members have access to these journals as part of their membership.
To increase the accessibility of research, this article synthesises the key messages from two articles published in 2018 in JIDD related to employment of people with intellectual disability.