What the employers said…..

In my previous blog I gave some quick feedback following the Focus Group, and the full report that we received from Felicity (Bullzeye Marketing & Design) definitely backed up those initial findings around:

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§  Acknowledging that disabled people deserved the same opportunities as others

§  The employer wanting to be fully informed about someone’s disability

§  The importance of financial incentives to the employer
§  Health & Safety concerns being a key factor

While some of the above may challenge our current thinking, it is important that we acknowledge that this is clear feedback that we have been given, and that maybe we have to find a way to ‘meet halfway’.

Some initial ideas or opportunities that emerge from the feedback include:

§  We need to make a bit more noise about what we provide in terms of services and support
§  We need to allay their fears around Health & Safety
§  Finding ways for employers to have more exposure to people with a disability as this can significantly reduce the barriers to employment
§  Delivering positive messages through other forum, for example to employer groups such as Chambers of Commerce

One of the more positive findings that emerged from the Focus Group was the suggestion that the disabled person often added much more to the workplace in terms of team morale, understanding, and patience. People enjoyed interacting with the person, seeing them as just another team member, but recognising that they often had the same sense of humour, motivation, enthusiasm and commitment as anyone else. In fact, they often showed greater loyalty and took less time off work. The employers often had positive comments from both fellow workers and customers.

An interesting final point came up when the employers were shown images that could be used in an awareness campaign, where the people shown didn’t have an obvious disability. This was seen by the employers as a way of hiding the person’s disability, which they didn’t appreciate, and linked back to their preference to be fully informed. This is something that we again will take on board, even though it is stereotyping, from their perspective it is obviously what gets the message across.

We are meeting with Felicity this week to decide the next step in our exciting project.

I would welcome anyone who has any questions or feedback to contact me at Enrich+ on 07 872 0954 or 021 280 4100.

Martyn Parkes, Executive Leader - Employment