Work Placement in the Open Labour Market

Due to the lack of employed persons with disability within the open labour market, the Association decided to add this service to assist employers and job seekers.  Employers will be helped with finding the right person for the job, how to work with this person, and how to make the integration a success.  Disabled job seekers will be assisted in varies ways to find employment that suites their qualification and expertise.

Recruitment

The employment of person with disabilities should not be viewed as a social responsibility, it should also not be seen purely as a legislative obligation and neither should it be separated from the normal diversification of the workforce as is determined in the Employment Equity Act.  Instead, it should be viewed as a business opportunity and imperative.  It makes good economic sense to employ people with disabilities both for the business, as well as the country as a whole. APD, Limpopo keeps a data base of unemployed persons with disabilities and would help you to find persons that qualify.

Recruitment process

The first step in the process is to draw up job profiles and specifications that clearly identify the inherent requirements and essential functions of the job, as well as the skills and capabilities required to perform the job. 

Advertisements

The purpose of the job adverts is to attract the most suitably qualified person from to make a selection for a particular vacancy position.  For this reason, the advert should be clear and concise, but contain enough detail about the inherent requirements of the job so that the potential applicant can make an informed decision. 

Adverts should not contain any unnecessary criteria that do not pertain the essential functions of the job, as this may unfairly exclude people with disability.  It is therefore important to draw up a job profile and a job specification before developing an advert, as it will enable the employer to clearly identify the inherent requirements and essential functions of the job as well as the skills and capabilities needed to perform the job. 

Selection

After receiving applications, the employer must engage in a selection process through short-listing applicants using selective criteria that are fair and non-discretionary.  The employer must use the same criteria to test the ability of people with disabilities as applied to applicants without disabilities. 

Focus of the interview

Interviews should focus on the applicant’s ability to perform the essential functions of the job irrespective of the nature, degree of severity of the disability.  “Interviewers should ask applicants [who have disclosed a disability or has a self-evident disability] to indicate how they would perform the essential functions and if accommodation is required.  No further detailed discussion should be entered into regarding the need for or costs of reasonable accommodation to perform the essential functions of the job at this stage of the recruitment process.  The employer should rather focus on the provision of reasonable accommodation to enable the applicant to participate equitably during the interview. 

Tips for jobseekers with disabilities

If you have a disability, you know it will more than likely affect a potential employer’s attitude towards you.  Even if your disability has no bearing on your ability to do the job, most employers will have some concerns.  It is up to you to show prospective  employers that, despite your disability, you are suitably qualified for the job. 

Here re 16 tips to keep in mind when searching for work.

1.                  Use a variety of job-seeking techniques.

2.                  Research prospective employers.

3.                  Role-play.

4.                  Know your own capabilities and limitations, what the job you want entails, what you can contribute to the job, and how to present yourself in the most positive manner.

5.                  Prepare well for the interview.

6.                  Find out where the company is situated well in advance.

7.                  Dress appropriately.

8.                  Arrive 15 minutes earlier.

9.                  Confidence is everything.

10.              Know what technologies can help you work effectively, how much they cost and where it can be obtained.

11.              Decide when to disclose your disability.

12.              Make the interview easy for the employer.

13.              There are several types of employment interviews.  Being familiar with each type will enable you to better prepare yourself for the interview.

14.              Be honest.

15.              Know your rights and familiarize yourself with current legislation.

16.              Don’t let past failures affect you negatively.

Reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities 

All designated employers under the Act and Code “should reasonably accommodate the needs of people with disabilities.”  This is both a non-discrimination and affirmative action requirement.  For employers who are required to develop employment equity plans, reasonable accommodation is an effective affirmative action measure.  The aim of this accommodation is to reduce the impact of the impairment on the person’s capability to perform the essential functions of the job. 

Accommodation, which is modifications or alterations to the way a job is normally performed, should make it possible for a suitably qualified person with a disability to perform as everyone else.  The type of reasonable accommodation required would depend on the job and its essential functions, the work environment and the person’s essential function of the job. 

Reasonable accommodation measures may include:

·         Assistance in making the workplace more accessible on the kind of person’s limitations and needs – for example, amongst others, renewal of physical barriers and access to information and technology (equipment and software)

·         Workstation modifications.

·         Adjustment to work schedules.

·         Adjustment to the nature and duration of the duties of the employee at work, either on a temporary or permanent basis.

·         The reallocation of non-essential job tasks and any other modifications to the work is normally performed or has been performed in the past. 

The criteria for reasonable accommodation includes tree interrelated factors:

·         The accommodation must remove the barriers to performing the job for a person who is otherwise qualified.  The employer must take steps, wherever reasonably practical, to mitigate the effect of an individual’s disability to enable him or her to play a full part in the workplace in order to achieve his or her full potential.

·         It must allow the person with disability to enjoy equal access t the benefits and opportunities of employment.  All staff must have equal rights to promotion.  The employer must take all reasonable steps to ensure that the working environment does not prevent people with disabilities from accessing or retaining positions for which they are suitable qualified.

·         Employers can adopt the most cost effective means consistent with the above two criteria. 

If the individual cannot perform essential job functions with reasonable accommodation, the employer need not employ the person.  The employer need not create a new job for the person with the disability, nor must the employer reallocate essential functions to another employee.  An employer may be required to restructure a job by reallocating non-essential, marginal job functions, but only if the applicant or employee with a disability can perform the essential functions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodation.  Reasonable accommodation may be temporary or permanent, depending on the nature and extent of the disability.  Progressive impairments may require temporary or permanent accommodation.

The photo's below show two successful appointments into suitable posts at APD Limpopo.