Enabled? At Work?

[Liz944]

Out of curiosity seeing alot of enabling disability advertisements on the TV at the moment... and wondering how many people who are currently working at the moment on this site have their workplace make reasonable adjustments for their dyspraxia (or other conditions)...

And if adjustments are made. What are they????

[Lucy_Rush]

I only work part time at the moment. And none of my jobs know about my dyspraxia. My jobs are not difficult jobs though. They are:

1. campus tour guide. - only problem is getting lost. i take notes with me to remember important points that i have to talk about. I supose this is an adjustment made by me since everyone else (who's been doing it less longer than me) remembers it all. I also had to learn a route to go by walking round it a several times before i started the job. But this is not diffficult job and i enjoy it, even if i do have my embarressing moments (i.e. today getting lost alone with 200 school kids following me. eeeek!)

2. Support Worker - i help disabled students, who need mobility support or library assistance (reaching books etc). I only do this as cover when someone is ill though mainly. Again i only adjusted by spending some time learning the places beforehand, (since i'd get lost trying to follow a map) and just apologise profusely when i get lost or whatever. The student knows i'm just covering and from a different university and usually think even me is better than no-one lol.

3. Invigilator - Ridiculously simple job. No adjustments made by me or needed. I just stand in silence. trudge up and down. and glare at gcse taking kids, whilst watching out for cheats. and try not to die of boredom so that i stop the exam at the correct time. (Which is quite important).

I would be interesting to see if any people with "proper" jobs has any adjustments made though. Lucy

[Lady Fluff]

I'm having an OH assessment next week, so I'll get back to you - good that work are taking an interest though (but then, they know how involved in Equalities I am, so they know I'll wipe the floor with them if they do anything but!)

[flowergirl]

Part of my job is supporting disabled students, but it's quite hard to find out what support exists for staff. All the stuff on the uni website is mostly geared towards students or is about how they want to increase numbers of disabled employees to make their stats look good.

[Meg]

My work place does know about my dyspraxia and are always asking me if I'm ok and will repeat things if need be. I work in a special needs play group five days a week. My managers very supportive but we are getting new staff at the end of feb which means they'll hve to know about my dyspraxia, but I dont't mindand am open about it.

Luv Meg
Xxxx

[gherkin001]

I hope that an employer would be sympathetic, im not yet allowed to work as my epilepsy is still too uncontrolled.

Kirsty

[Lady Fluff]

by way of an update, I had my assessment with work this week, and they're not only helping me get all the stuff that the university recommends for me, but also a few additional things just for work, so that's really good! Big up Cardiff Council!

[Owen]

I am on a work placement at Netto thanks to being unemployed for over a year. I didn't ask to be put here as I put the Library as my first choice as that seems a pleasant place to be, but the company that runs New Deal in the area I live in told me that they had find me a placement at Netto, and I couldn't complain as this could mean them cutting my benefits! I find it a struggle, I have told plenty of staff there that i have dyspraxia yet I still have to do lots of shelf filling which lasts most of the day as no trainees are allowed to operate the tills there. I have made several mistakes trying to find where stocks go sometimes I look at the ticket for the stock and it doesn't register with my brain! The deputy manager hasn't been helpful as recently he seems to have been rushing me to get things put out eventhough I have told him I can only do so much at my own pace as I have dyspraxia. I don't think he grasps this, leaving me frustrated. I told the supervisor that I have dyspraxia but she seems to be a bit patronising towards me now. I will be glad when it is all over, I really would not want a job here but I am in such a rut that if they offered me a job and I didn't except then the Job Centre could cut my benefits all together!

[Owen]

Just an update about my work placement. It seems to be going a bit better now that the store manager has had a word with the deputy manager to tell him that I have dyspraxia and therefore not to rush me! Ironically it was the store manager who had been putting pressure on the deputy manager to rush things, and this seems to be the set-up in these Supermarkets i don't think they are dyspraxic friendly places to be! I haven't really increased my pace much i have never been a fast worker that is why where i used to work at a theme park was ideal for me because they knew in the department that i was in that you could only do what time allowed you there was no rush on until the high season and even then it was easier to adapt to. I am finding shelf filling less baffling now as i find more things but it seems to have taken me most of my time there. The thing i dread the most is when someone at the checkout rings there bell and i am on the shop floor and am expected to deal with it unless another worker gets there in time. It feels humilating trying to find items when there is a big que waiting for my return with the item that some customer wants replacing- this seems to be the most common request. Still finding customers infuriating! This is not the ideal type of work for me but at least it has been an experience.