Vernon Morning Star - Thesis looks at employment for the disabled

Here is an article about my community presentation on the research of my thesis:

Thesis looks at employment for the disabled

Laura Hockman, with her dog, Gabbi, gets ready to present the information on disabilities and employment she found in research for her master of arts degree.

Cara Brady/Morning Star
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Published: July 06, 2010 7:00 PM
Looking for work can be difficult at any time. Laura Hockman, executive director of the Vernon Disability Resource Centre, knows it is even more challenging for people with disabilities and she decided to use her masters degree thesis research to find out just what issues there are.
She presented her findings at a recent workshop in Vernon.
"Everything I found out was fascinating. For example, in 1982, a federal government report made 120 recommendations around employment and disabilities. In 1996, a similar report said three areas needed improvement and didn't even mention the other areas," said Hockman, who earned her master of arts from UBC Okanagan this spring.
"Employment is important for more than the financial independence. Employment is a huge part of a person's identity and social networking. It's too easy, and very destructive, to go from 'I don't do anything,’ to 'I am no one.'"
Her thesis looked at how people with disabilities experience their search for employment and taking part in employment programs, as well as how people with disabilities are regarded in society and how their disabilities and lack of employment affects other areas of their lives.
She had interviews with 12 people with disabilities who had accessed support from a results-based employment program in Vernon. She followed standard research protocol and also researched federal and provincial law as it applies to employment and people with disabilities.
"This research was earth-shattering for me on a professional and personal level. There were days when I felt not well because of what I was hearing from participants and their experiences and hopes for themselves and their families," said Hockman, who has been a social worker for 11 years.
She said society usually views disabilities from one of two points of view, the medical model that disability is something that has to be cured, or a social model that society creates the barriers for people with disabilities and must help remove the barriers. She noted that for every two people born with a disability, there are 10 people with an acquired disability, by accident, a medical condition or other factors.
"Disabilities make family and personal relationships and attitude and self-care become very important. Professionals need to realize how important it is for them to have good relationships with people with disabilities. While that person with a disability with a concern may seem routine to a professional, for that person, the issue may be life-changing," said Hockman.
She also talked about transportation, the vital importance of confidentiality, helping people with disabilities to find volunteer work to gain skills to lead to employment, positive support caring for the whole person and financial pressures.
"Present uncertainty is a self-identified issue. People do not know what will happen in the short and long term, they may move a lot and become more vulnerable. So much is out of their control and they make high risk choices. A lot of time is spent waiting for calls that could change things, a pension allowed or denied, a job interview, a professional appointment," she said.
"So many connection and control issues came out. I realized that this is about inclusion, having the control to connect how you choose. Many of the people I talked to wanted to be self-employed as entrepreneurs. I took this partly as frustration with not being able to find suitable employment."
Hockman was surprised that participants did not specifically name societal attitudes as a problem but they knew that pre-conceived notions of disabilities influenced how they were being treated. Since they did not know what to do about this prejudice, they seemed to dismiss it.
She concluded that there are a number of ways to move forward, including helping people learn how to manage their disabilities, making service providers who work with people with disabilities aware of the importance of positive interaction and becoming familiar with government policies and working towards changes as necessary.
Hockman plans to put the information from her thesis online. For more information, contact her at the Vernon Disability Resource Centre at 250-545-9292.

To read the thesis, A Longer Journey, An Exploration of Individuals' with Disabilities Experiences of Employment Programs in Vernon, BC, visit:   https://circle.ubc.ca/handle/2429/25800

I am currently, working on an Executive Summary of A Longer Journey, so please check back to this BLOG to read when it is posted.