5 June 2015

Sometimes the work that City Disabilities does feels a bit doom and gloom. Many people approach us for help only when they have tried every other way to get assistance. By the time they get to us they are already feeling isolated and disheartened.

We also hear more horror stories than good news: an institution that won’t provide additional support to its disabled members because “there is no bar to people with disabilities finding employment” being the most recent, and frankly extraordinary, story that we have heard.

To some extent this is to be expected; if you are with a good employer, properly enabled and enjoying your career, you are unlikely to seek out an organisation such as ours.

Over the last couple of weeks we have met with two mentees, who do not know each other, but who are in fact very similar. They share the same long term health condition, the same profession, and the same desire to develop a niche area in that profession. They also share the same concerns about working conditions and the attitudes of employers to a request to work differently.

One of them has already experienced an employer who failed to understand both the health condition in question, and, it would seem, their legal obligation towards their employees. Meeting with ignorance (at best) and prejudice (at worst) knocks the confidence of even the most robust employee, and it can be tough to come back from that.

Frequently what happens next is this: you find a better employer, and you start to believe that having a job you have been enabled to do is enough. If you feel side-lined or bored, it’s the price you pay for gaining employment at all. A disabled person frequently feels expected to be grateful that the employer has agreed to take them on. Replace the word “disabled” with “black” or “female” and you will see (if you have not already) how grossly inappropriate that sentiment is. We are not remotely “grateful” that people with disabilities are offered employment, and they shouldn’t be either. The ones we meet are well qualified, hard-working candidates whose dedication to their chosen profession is already beyond question, given the hurdles they have overcome to get there in the first place. The offer of a job is merely the beginning of a career that should encompass progress, promotion and development – just as it does for every other employee.

It isn’t all bad news, of course. Indeed, many City employers take a very different approach to employees with disabilities. One of our mentors, a wheelchair user, has clearly been fairly treated.  There are people out there, his employer included, who don’t see this as “disability awareness” or “diversity” or “inclusion” but purely as a practical problem.  These employers can no more understand congratulation for their approach than they can congratulation for not robbing a bank.  They are quite genuinely an inspiration and a reminder that the bedrock of disability awareness is simply human decency and respect for the dignity of others.

The two mentees we met recently want to aim high. They believe they can do a first class job with a top employer and we fully expect that in time they will achieve just that. Through our mentoring scheme, they have been put in touch with the same mentor, who is exactly the right match for them. Our mentor has dealt with many similar issues and attitudes, and is excellent at thinking around problems and inspiring confidence. I hope that over time the two mentees will also get to know each other too – they have much in common.

And this is the type of work we do that is not so doom and gloom. We are able to provide two excellent candidates with the support and confidence they need – within a wider network of people who can draw on each other’s experiences as they progress through their careers. Although we do not deny the cost to some of having to be persistent, we do believe that determination wins at the end of the day.