Disclosure campaigns
and why they fail
The need for support and how this promotes disclosure
As is now well known since earlier this
year, all staff need to participate themselves in completing the EEA1
Employment Equity Act forms, as required by the department of Labour...
Admittedly, at the time of writing it was mooted by DOL that should
anyone not complete EEA1, the relevant line or HR manager could complete
it at his or her best discretion.
In the form, employees amongst other things need to establish their
own racial group and gender, which ought to pose little difficulty one
imagines.
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However, the question, “Do you have a Disability”?
is the one that throws most people.
How do I know if I have a disability?
The reason this is a struggle, is that so many people
still see Disability in very limiting and narrow terms.
Firstly it is seen usually as other peoples problems, and so it never
enters their minds that perhaps an impairment they may have might in
fact be disabling
Secondly, Disability is usually seen by people, from their limited experience,
in dramatic and extreme forms. I.e. the ubiquitous wheelchair user,
The Blind, the Deaf, or The mentally disabled. And, therefore, if I
don’t have any of “those”, then I cannot be disabled.
These views have entirely robbed people of any experience
or imagination in being able to “relate” to disability in
any kind of personal way or with perspective.
The reality is that Disabilities even in the narrow
confines of Employment Equity, are not always dramatic or spectacular.
And very often the Disability is entirely invisible to others apart
from the affected person.
Then a second problem emerges, which is actually the single biggest
reason why we have such low disclosure in South African businesses.
The unwillingness to disclose even when we are fairly sure that we in
fact do have an impairment that is disabling.
This reticence can be easily attributed to employees being nervous or
downright petrified at the idea of others finding out they do in fact
have a problem.
Mostly this is due to fear of discrimination or rejection or labeling
or actual prejudice.
But it can also show how little is understood about Reasonable accommodation
and how disclosing might in fact benefit both the staff member and the
employer if an appropriate form of accommodation was employed to assist.
So in all, the net result is that to date
we have a stupendously high rate of non disclosure, even by people;
that even a blind person could tell have very real disabilities.
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So what is missing?
Much of the non compliance can be attributed
to ignorance.
Ignorance about whether an impairment is disabling or not, or ignorance
about the law and its protection and relative safety. Or ignorance that
in fact with reasonable accommodation, the disabling nature of the impairment
may well be addressed and negated, leaving the employee better off due
to their disclosure.
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Why is this important now?
With increasing pressure from the Department of Labour;
for companies to comply with long standing Employment Equity obligations,
and their attempts to increase numbers of Disabled people, , companies
are turning to disclosure as a means to “boost” there numbers
of perceived undisclosed people lurking amongst their staff compliment.
At the coal face, employees face EEA1,
and other related disclosure campaigns. And the exercise invariably
fails.
Simply because, without preparation, support and increased awareness;
coerced disclosure will never work. Many organizations have wasted far
too much money on premature and unsupported disclosure exercises, almost
all ending in tears.
In addition, as is very clearly stated in the Code of Good Practice
on Employing People with Disabilities, disclosure is not something one
can force. Of course at the same time, as is well known, if one does
not disclose, then unless the disability is extremely self evident,
accommodation cannot be automatically expected.
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The need for Awareness
Firstly awareness raising must be an on going and thorough
strategy. There is little point in educating only a few managers or
staff, leaving others out. Awareness and sensitization help to inform
people about not only the experience of others and to inform participants
about technique and best practice, an understanding of the law, definitions,
reasonable accommodation, customer service etc; but also assists them
in self awareness. After all anyone might have or need to disclose a
disability. At the same time, ones seniority in a company does not imply
some advanced knowledge or greater understanding of disability, just
by dint of lofty rank or higher salary. Managers and executives need
to be made aware too.
Secondly, even with a bit of awareness,
usually in the form of a workshop, which is invariably too short, more
information is likely to be necessary to aid the employee in his or
her own query as to whether their particular impairment is disabling
or not. Naturally the same applies to support staff, who are expected
to assist.
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Kinds of support
Disability Desk
In any organization, Someone or several
people need to be more prepared and informed than most others in the
company.
This is often some cousin of HR and those identified support people.
They must have strong, in depth overall training to be able to field
any kinds of questions that might occur. At the same time they need
to be able to rely on second tier support themselves if they are stumped
for an answer, such as a reliable consultant or members of the Disability
sector etc.
(Note; one of the most commonly practiced mistakes is to assume that
a person is an expert in Disability simply because they have a Disability.
Having a disability in addition to experience or training makes for
good Disability Desk representatives, not just the Disability itself.)
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Other support
Intranet support
Many organizations have converted their forms into
an IT supported system, including such forms asEEA1.
Using the Intranet to support your queries is a cost effective and time
saving device. It is also an excellent way of channeling queries directly
toward some designated support facility such as a Disability Desk.
It would anticipate the typical problems experienced
by most people when faced with EEA1, and the question about Disability.
The support system would need to provide
both factual support information such as the Definition of Disability,
but also provide contextual insight into how to understand, interpret
and apply the definition.
Also, very importantly it ought to provide examples of exceptions so
as to save time, energy and embarrassment later.
If creatively done, this support can double as E-learning and participating
staff will leave genuinely better informed, and the EEA1 will be completed
accurately.
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Things not to do in intranet solutions.
Using drop down lists to try help identify
types of disabilities is a waste of time. There are simply too many
kinds of conditions and impairments that may or not be disabling to
try and list them all in drop down menus. At best, you will end up with
a list in the hundreds, and at worst, you will run the risk of excluding
or denying real impairments.
Even a cunningly designed multi faceted drop down solution would be
limiting as it is unlikely to provide the flexibility or latitude which
is often required to establish if some impairment is indeed disabling.
What is needed is a painfully simple solution
that could be easily installed in an intranet support system and that
would ensure maximum learning and best potential for disclosure at the
same time. These tools do exist and have been shown to work.
Contact Jeremy@disabilitydesk.co.za
for more information.
Jeremy Opperman
2010
