On Our Own Tracks

Our realities behind the ‘Remove The Barrier’ campaign and practical tips for how you can get involved with the changing world of employment for people who have disabilities!

In current times, our employment path has changed from being primarily a source of income to being one of the key ways many of us identify ourselves. But what about people with disabilities? What is the reality behind the news stories and initiatives such as the ‘Remove The Barrier’ campaign?

The ‘Remove the Barrier’ campaign was launched in July 2019 by Paralympian, Dylan Alcott, who is also a radio host and motivational speaker. The campaign aims to raise awareness of high rates of unemployment among people with a disability and encourage Australians to remove the visible and invisible barriers that prevent people with disability finding work (Click here to see video).

In my case, I am lucky enough to say that I currently have two casual jobs with two disability agencies known as Northcott and Hireup, plus I am currently just starting up my own business motivational speaking. I view these jobs as important stepping stones in my career as they have already taught me so much. These jobs involve skills within presenting, communicating, facilitating, writing and web development which I know will be vital assets to me within my preferred line of work. Although I have been admittedly stuck over the past few months with discovering what my next steps will be after completing my degree, I do feel that I am now able to move forward with my career using the experiences my amazing support network and education have given me.

Throughout this and many other journeys in my life, I have always had wonderful mentors around me that have assisted me in pursuing my best possible outcomes. One of these mentors that I have always looked up to is my friend, Martha. From our casual meeting at the shops one day, Martha and I have had one amazing friendship involving collaborating with – or challenging – each other on either extreme sports, employment ideas or how we can contribute to our society in the best ways possible. Martha has Cerebral Palsy and although this impairs her mobility, Martha is still able to use a computer and verbally communicate. One of the things that I find the most interesting about Martha’s journey is that because she’s a tiny bit older than me she has had a little more exposure to society’s progression with inclusion, particularly with employment. As Martha explains, her frustrations with inclusion in the mainstream employment sector initially began with experiencing a severe lack of access in most offices she applied to work in, as most of them were upstairs. By the time she entered her thirties, Martha realised how her established network and her connections were the key to finding her a job.

For Martha, this network was primarily in the disability sector which meant that she was able to access services such as ‘Job Access who provided her with equipment including an electric wheelchair to assist her physically in the workplace. Utilising these connections meant that Martha was able to get two amazing jobs that were flexible enough to let her choose her own hours and work from home, which was absolutely perfect for her. Martha is grateful that society’s attitude about employment for people with disabilities has improved so much over time, especially with the help from initiatives such as the ‘Remove the Barrier’ campaign. With this, Martha encourages anyone with a disability to be creative and think ‘outside the box’ when thinking about employment. Also for employers, she recommends to be as open minded and flexible as possible while not being afraid to ask your potential employees questions about their needs.

Another of my mentors who has constantly been there for me for over ten years is my beautiful friend, Julie. I first met Julie at various services with ‘Northcott Disability Services’ that we attended when we were both teenagers. Julie currently has a Bachelor of Psychology Degree and a Masters Degree in Commerce and Human Resources. She took up a scholarship to study in New York and has completed a paid internship through Stepping Into, which is a program designed for students with disabilities. Despite all of these achievements and Julie’s incredible drive and determination, she feels that she does get some what discriminated against due to her disability when looking for a job. Julie was born with a condition called ‘Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 2’ (SMA) which basically means that she has extreme weakness in her whole body especially in her arms and legs.

Despite quite a number of previous let downs Julie currently has a few jobs within the disability and diversity industry, which she absolutely loves. As Julie has stated. although working in the disability industry is not what she expected she has met “the best people” and has learnt so much about herself while being in the industry. These jobs include partly managing a business, which she is a founder of , Empowering Solutions and working part time with the City of Sydney in the area of diversity and inclusion (equal opportunity), which is her passion.

Utilising her experiences, Julie has offered some advice on how adaptive employment can be integrated into our society. Firstly, if you have a disability and find yourself looking for work, Julie recommends that you surround yourself with people who are as passionate about inclusion as you are so that you’re able to grow your network easily. This is while doing your research on what you would really want to do with your career, and remembering that inclusion within our modern world is improving so much that we are now comfortably able to push through those stereotypes. To employers, Julie recommends to firstly make sure that you don’t focus on the person’s disability when they are in the application process for the position and think about whether they are capable to do the job according to their qualifications, experience and personality.

Now that you have read about our stories and perspectives concerning our employment journeys, hopefully you will see how important being employed is to someone’s self esteem, identity and purpose no matter their abilities. Hopefully you can also see how important movements like the ‘Remove The Barrier’ Campaign are in educating businesses and encouraging employers to make a difference by being part of this huge push for an increase in disability employment.