Published on 12, July, 2020
In May last year the TUC launched its guide to employment of people on the autistic spectrum. It was written for them by Janine Booth who runs autism in the workplace training events for the Workers' Educational association.
This is a different route into the problem from the mainly NAS led approach, the trades union perspective. It is directed at trade union officers who come across autism issues in the workplace, and therefore might potentially have a strong influence on how peple at work treat autistic spectrum colleagues.
It starts off by establishing a Social Model of Disability perspective (my pet hate from an educational point of view - I don't think this works for autism). The social model looks at barriers in the work environment which clash with autistic impairment. All you have to do it seems is make some environmental and material adjustments and then people on the autistic spectrum will have the same chances as everyone else. Simples.....
It then explains the Triad of Impairment. There's a long section with lots of examples of thinking literally. On executive function - this is the set of abilities that enable people to translate motivation into action. START doing someting, CHANGE what you are doing, STOP doing something once started, and Managing Time. Then Motor Function, Sensory Sensitivity, Sensory Overload, two-line description each. This leads to distress, meltdowns sometimes, and stimming.
Then the usual platitudes debunking the mythology - behaviour is a product of distress, difference not disability, apparently 60-70 percent of people on the autistic spectrum have a learning disability, many people with autism do not want to be cured. - you know all this stuff.
The great mystery is the lack of references - what is all this based on? All they provide are 6 websites - the all party paliamentary group, autism europe, the autism hub, autistic uk, DANDA and NAS. An autism timeline in an appendix reaches 2013 without mentioning the Autism Act or Leading Rewarding and Fulfilling Lives... The last UK contribution was the formation of the All Party Parliamentary Group in 2000.
In other words - lets not bother doing this properly - lets just package together a lot of opinionated rubbish and that's good enough for the TUC.
To the TUC: - "Most Autistic people can work, including in normal (whatever that may mean) workplaces"
"People with autism have various means of communication - some are more verbal than others"
They list a lot of reasons why workplaces create difficulties for autistic workers: discrimination, bullying, lack of communication and support, preventing an autistic person carrying out duties or using equipment when there is no valid reason to do so. Also lower pay, imposition of new arrangements at work, working conditions in the past, autistic workers are more likely to have periods without work, decreased self confidence, work environments, bossy managers, disruption of routines, contracting out, and latterly "expecting people to abide by social rules without ever specifying what they are", "making judgements about a worker's social interaction" " issues with assessment and/or pronotional processes".
Now those last three I'd say were priority ones. Most of the preceding material is standard TUC issues, discussed at length. When we get down to these three, we are on unexplained one-liners. They are followed by more and repetitive one-liners. They are just adding on things they've read somewhere but dont understand. Right at the bottom of this long list comes "sensory issues, eg noise, light, smell".
There follows a section on workers with autistic dependents. It is again standard trade union stuff.
What they propose is, even without knowing staff might have autism, make the work-place more autism friendly. Provide a relaxation space, changes to working practices to be negoiated with the union, occupational health and managemnent training about autism, time off for trade union representatives to attend training, all instructions and policies to be written clearly, anti-harrassment, time off.
That's the solution apparently - social model, remove the "barriers" and it will all be hunky dorey. There's some standard stuff about politically correct language and hate crime. Then some stuff about the impact of auterity and autism in parliament, which ends with APPG in 2000. Nothing about the Autism Act. However the Autism Act is mentioned under a section on the law.
My problem with this document is there is no real undderstanding of autism. There's no sign of any effort to understand autism. Just the usual social model tripe - make a few wee anticipatory adjustments - nothing to autism really.
The whole document is a disgrace. I'm not anti-union. I was in a union most of my life and even for a while a rep. But this document is a sham. The TUC should be thoroyughly ashamed. They've not taken autism seriously, merely adapted autism to a general moan about workplace conditions for all employees, which is not fair.
So what's the big deal about giving good advice on how to improve workplace conditions for people on the autistic spectrum. Certainly NAS, the TUC and the DWP seem unable to make any progress. But people are coming up with answers in America. What are they doing that we are not doing?
This is important given I've just chewed up a document produced by the TUC on autism in the workplace. I'm not a spoiler or a knocker: I want to be constructive. But nobody out there seems to be trying hard enough.One source that really ought to be able to make progress in this are the unions. So why does the TUC only manage to come up with inadequately researched platitudes? The answer I'm afraid is there is no UK body of knowledge on this.
I've looked at a paper published in America - This is by Dawn Hendricks (2010) "Employment and adults with autism spectrum disorders: Challenges and Strategies for success". (Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation Vol 32 (2010) p125-134. The research at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, based on both a wide literature review and data gathering comes up with suggestions for the workplace. The literature review includes a lot of UK-based insight, so why cannot we come up with practical suggestions?
This includes job placement (careful examination of the job specification) and adaptation of the job spec. A supportive environment including job coaches who stick with the individual for a good length of time gradually fading out. On the job training to help the individual acquire and adapt skills to do the job.
For example a palm top computer could be provided which goes through the steps of various job tasks both visually and verbally, which the individual can consult until comfortable and refer back to when needed.
Provide a consistent schedule for completion of work tasks....something the individual can refer to to keep on track. Simple organisers with worksheets, checklists, and timescales. Ideas for managing down time effectively. The technology for this is around. It just needs work study directed at the needs of those on the autistic spectrum.
Similarly providing behaviour management strategies in an accessible format that the individual can refer to to remind him/herself of options for dealing with stressful or uncomfortable situations.
Workers with autism may need extended support structures for when something goes wrong, new stresses arise, in a changing environment to which they have adapted. Those supports could be similar instructions in a palm top device they can consult discretely.These guidelines could include strategies for relating to different types of manager and superviser and different management styles - this sort of knowledge is around, it just needs appropriate packaging.
The technology to do this is around. It just needs investment a committment to provide it.
Something the TUC seems to be sadly lacking, but equally NAS and DWP don't seem to be doing any better.