Background to the Research

• USEL was established in 1962 and its remit was to provide paid employment for people with disabilities within its Belfast manufacturing base. In 1980, it expanded its operation to incorporate the Workshops for the Blind, making it the largest employer of disabled people in Northern Ireland.
• It is a Non-departmental Public Body and operates under the direction of the Department for Employment and Learning.
• It provides employment services, broker services, work experience opportunities and manufacturing services.
• This research was designed to identify the opportunities available to, and the barriers that exist within today's labour market for, people with disabilities.
  

Research Approach

• The research was carried out between June 2003 and March 2004 and a triangulated methodological approach was employed.
• Two surveys, one specifically for each sample, were designed and sent to 809 clients and 606 employers. Return rates were 20.1% for employers and 19.2% for clients.
• Within both the overall sample and the sample who participated in the research, two thirds were male and one third female.
• Twenty eight clients were invited to participate in case studies: 7 accepted. Interviews were conducted at the client's place of employment. The use of case studies enabled the clients to discuss, in their own words, their experiences and authors hoped that it would be an empowering and positive experience for them.
• Semi-structured interviews were also conducted with USEL's Chief Executive and Development Manager to obtain background information.
• Clients who were involved in short term work were excluded from the survey.
• A review of the literature is included in the report. It focuses on: the benefits of employment and the effects of unemployment; the employment of people with disabilities; and rights and responsibilities.
  

Main Findings

Disability/Health Condition

• One hundred and fifty seven respondents stated that they had a disability: 91 people had a single disability and 66 people had multiple disabilities. In total, 236 disabilities were identified.
• The most common disability, learning difficulties, (which included mild to severe forms), was reported by 19.5% of the respondents.
• Epilepsy, again ranging from mild to severe, was the second most prevalent disability (6.75%) whilst 6% of participants are deaf or have a hearing impairment.

Implications

• Due to the varied nature of the disabilities presented, it was considered unrealistic to assume that all USEL support staff had detailed knowledge of all of the disabilities prevalent within the sample.
• Whilst one half of the sample was happy to have their disability acknowledged, the other half would have preferred not to disclose it to their colleagues.
• With regard to the most prevalent disabilities, the authors argue that it would be reasonable to expect employers to have staff who are trained specifically within these areas. Such members of staff could be expected to support the employer by providing training to other members of staff, which would enable an employee with such a disability to receive the appropriate support needed.

Types of Employment

• Fourteen categories of employment were identified. The evidence presented in this study supports previous research which has demonstrated that people with disabilities tend to occupy low paid and low skilled positions.
• Many of the clients work as part of a team, which enables them to obtain support from other members.
• Twenty four percent work in administrative roles, whilst 14% are employed in retail, 13% in manufacturing and 12% in hospitality and catering.
• They were, however, more critical of their employers and reported having to involve USEL to resolve disputes about working conditions and wages.

Employer Profiles

• The businesses surveyed ranged from having 3 to 4,000 employees.
• Twenty one percent employed less than 10 people, 42% employed 10-49 people, 29% employed between 50-249 people and 8% had over 250 members of staff.
• Almost all of the businesses within the first two categories (micro and small) employed 1 person with a disability.
• Medium sized businesses employed between 2-5 disabled people, whilst the largest companies employed at least 6 people with disabilities.
• Thirty five percent have employed a client for less than 5 years, showing that USEL is continually attracting and developing partnerships with new businesses.
• Fifty six percent have at least 6 years experience of employing people with disabilities. The authors urge USEL to capitalise on the experience and knowledge gained through conferences or other networking opportunities.

Barriers

• Thirty eight percent of employers felt that there were no barriers for disabled people within their workplace. This includes the financial investment involved in employing a person with a disability which can include decreased output, additional training and supervising. In other instances, new premises had been built which complied with accessibility laws or were adapted to meet particular needs.
• They also stated that they had previously made adjustments and would make additional changes if necessary.
• A number of employers were keen to highlight their desire for compliance with equality legislation.
• In only one instance was a dedicated member of staff employed to oversee training and policy development. The authors conclude that this is a luxury that most small businesses cannot afford and effort should be made to facilitate the sharing of knowledge.
• The most common responses included the demands of the job or physical environment as well as handling dangerous or heavy equipment.
• Amongst the clients, 42.5% reported not experiencing any difficulty finding work, although 27% of this sample developed their disability whilst in employment.
• Of the remaining 57.5% who did experience problems, these often began during the recruitment process and commonly involved difficulties completing the application forms by people with literacy difficulties.
• A number of people felt that after declaring their disability, they were not short listed for interview even though they met all of the criteria. Ten percent also felt that employers' fear or bias had a detrimental effect on their search for employment.
• Interviews are also considered to be problematic by people with communication difficulties.
• Employers highlighted the valuable role that USEL staff played during the selection process.
• Eighty two percent felt that they had never employed a disabled person who was unable to meet the demands of the job.
• A demand for the provision of information on disability to non-disabled employees emerged very clearly.
• Clients expressed their frustration that non-disabled people often see the disability first as opposed to the person or their capacity.
• The authors suggest alternative methods which employers could adopt in order to facilitate the employment of people with disabilities.

Insurmountable Difficulties

• Forty six percent of clients felt that they had been able to overcome all obstacles in their workplace, although 10% clarified this by stating that they would rely on USEL or employers to assist them.
• Other difficulties experienced included: the nature of specific jobs (9%); the denial of promotions (7%); bullying (5%); poor communication, numeracy or literacy skills (5%) and unsympathetic supervisors or employers (3%).

Doubts and Worries

• Nearly three quarters of employers (72%) stated that they never had and concerns about employing a person with a disability.
• Of the remaining 28%, the main concerns were: the meeting reasonable adjustment requirements (22%), the suitability of a disabled person for a particular post (20%) and the extra time required to monitor the employee (14%).

Job Failure

• Eighteen percent of employers admitted having employed a person who could not meet the demands of the job.
• The two key reasons cited for this were that the job was physically too demanding for the person (26%) or that the employee had very limited abilities (20%).

Successes and Achievements

• Key achievements included: continued employment or work placement (19%); being made to feel a valued member of staff (10%) and being given responsibility as an indicator of progress made (6%) and increased self confidence (5%).
• Educational benefits included: gaining a computer (6%) or new vocational skills (6%) or achieving NVQ level 1 or 2 (4.5%) or another qualification (5%).

Advantages

• Sixty one percent of employers offered at least one benefit from employing people with disabilities.
• The most common responses were: commitment given (13%) employee's satisfaction (9%) honesty (7%) promotes understanding of disability (7%) and customer's appreciation of inclusion of disabled employees (6%).

USEL Support

• Overall, the vast majority of participants were satisfied with the support and assistance they had received from their USEL support worker and USEL in general.
• Nine percent said that the financial support given by USEL was invaluable and that they believed they would not be employed without it.

Conclusions

• Overall, this report demonstrates that both clients and employees are very positive about the role played by USEL in facilitating the employment of people with disabilities.
• Disability training awareness should be made more widely available and employers should review current practices.
• The authors encourage USEL to promote the sharing of good practice amongst employers.
• Creative recruitment practices should be developed to promote a more inclusive workplace.