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How can we provide sustainable employment for ASD individuals?

spadger

Does anyone know of any projects running or due to start that focus on training and sustainable employability for autistic individuals? 

Their seems to be little real government policy regarding supporting and assisting the huge volume of unemployed ASD people into sustainable employment despite most of them wanting to be in employment. 

Considering the strengths ASD individuals can offer to employers given the appropriate support and training, it seems to me that society is missing out on a massive valuable untapped resource.

I think the challenge is to convince employers (and society in general) that many unemployed ASD people who want to work also have a lot to offer.

Once employers realise that ASD employees can potentially make their business more profitable then positive progress will be made.

Before that happens though employers themselves need to be educated to understand how to utilise these skills and create an ASD compatible environment.

Even before that educators / facilitators must provide a framework that allows this to happen.

A Danish organisation, Specialisterne (see below) has developed such a framework and I am currently investigating whether alternatives exist in the UK.

Specialisterne (Specialists), framework model assists ASD people into sustainable, professional, rewarding work (mainly testing software and data entry). http://specialistpeople.com/

In recent years they have also developed a franchise style partnership model and as such have expanded into a number of countries the nearest being Scotland. http://www.specialisternescotland.org/

As of this date I believe that they are the only organisation focusing on ASD employability who are currently operating in the UK but if you know any different would love to hear.

Parents

  • Apologies longman, wolfbear and anyone else if I have offended anyone by making problems at work sound irrelevant if that is the case. I do in fact fully understand the significance.

    I guess this is down to my personal need to break down, address and get some closure on one question at a time because I don't just get the parents perspective. I to have the Aspergers condition you see. 

    I to have endured to say the least, an irratic, mixed employment experience peppered with periods of unemployment and study for 30 years. I have feared every breaktime and lunchtime in every place I have worked because of the prospect of social interaction etc etc. In one job I arrived one morning to find my desk had been removed from the office and placed outside in the corridor by my 'work mates' whilst the manager laughed and carried on working.

    Yes I have experienced 'bad' stuff over the years and even recently this has occurred. Rest assured I do respect the experiences of others and regret that I have not been articulate enough to demonstrate this previously.

    That said I would like to return to the general points you have made. I fully agree that work environments can be onerous and demoralizing thereby perpetuating a negative outlook and future failure. Therefore it is crucial that an ASD individuals early employment experience is positive, supportive and motivational.

    Longman your points about problematic areas in the workplace are particularly relevant to my project although I do agree with Scorpion based on my own experiences and those of others that ASD individuals can and do operate in team situations and can manage others successfully when a professional environment exists.

    I have successfully managed teams on a number of occasions. This really substantiates what I and others, yourself included, have posted previously. An ASD individual can potentially experience both failure and success in employment. The employment environment is crucial for the latter to occur.

    Does the NAS autism accreditation scheme meet this requirement as regards to its partner employers? Any views please.

    Thanks longman for your excellent literacy references which I intend to follow up and I value everyones input tremendously.

Reply

  • Apologies longman, wolfbear and anyone else if I have offended anyone by making problems at work sound irrelevant if that is the case. I do in fact fully understand the significance.

    I guess this is down to my personal need to break down, address and get some closure on one question at a time because I don't just get the parents perspective. I to have the Aspergers condition you see. 

    I to have endured to say the least, an irratic, mixed employment experience peppered with periods of unemployment and study for 30 years. I have feared every breaktime and lunchtime in every place I have worked because of the prospect of social interaction etc etc. In one job I arrived one morning to find my desk had been removed from the office and placed outside in the corridor by my 'work mates' whilst the manager laughed and carried on working.

    Yes I have experienced 'bad' stuff over the years and even recently this has occurred. Rest assured I do respect the experiences of others and regret that I have not been articulate enough to demonstrate this previously.

    That said I would like to return to the general points you have made. I fully agree that work environments can be onerous and demoralizing thereby perpetuating a negative outlook and future failure. Therefore it is crucial that an ASD individuals early employment experience is positive, supportive and motivational.

    Longman your points about problematic areas in the workplace are particularly relevant to my project although I do agree with Scorpion based on my own experiences and those of others that ASD individuals can and do operate in team situations and can manage others successfully when a professional environment exists.

    I have successfully managed teams on a number of occasions. This really substantiates what I and others, yourself included, have posted previously. An ASD individual can potentially experience both failure and success in employment. The employment environment is crucial for the latter to occur.

    Does the NAS autism accreditation scheme meet this requirement as regards to its partner employers? Any views please.

    Thanks longman for your excellent literacy references which I intend to follow up and I value everyones input tremendously.

Children
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