Hiring people with intellectual disabilities: employers are discovering that with a little help, workers with such disabilities can take on a wide array of jobs

HR Magazine, July, 2005 by Linda Wasmer Andrews

Moreover, it's not only employees with intellectual disabilities who may need to brush up on their social skills. "There are a great number of people who, because of compassion or empathy, want to be overly protective and cautious around the employee" with an intellectual disability, says Gosden. "Then there are just as many people who still say 'retard.'"

Although harassment has more-serious legal implications, both types of extreme behavior are counterproductive. Gosden recommends sending the message that "you don't have to put on kid gloves to work with another adult just because that person has a disability, but you do need to show some sensitivity." A disability awareness and sensitivity course might be a good preventive measure.

"For employees with intellectual disabilities, the biggest thing you need is a support network," says Tammie McNaughton, director of corporate staffing and workforce initiatives at Highmark, a large insurer based in Pittsburgh. "That can mean anything from a mentor to a supervisor to co-workers who remind them, 'It's 10 o'clock. Time to take our break now.'" Highmark's employees with intellectual disabilities hold positions such as insurance claims examiner and mail clerk.

Beyond social support, what individuals with intellectual disabilities frequently need most is a chance to show what they can do. "For people who are not disabled, oftentimes they're overwhelmed by too many expectations. For people with disabilities, they're not given a fair shake because people don't expect enough of them," says Wayne McMillan, president and CEO of Bobby Dodd Institute, a vocational rehabilitation provider in Atlanta. "We believe each individual has a contribution to make, and they can do that if given an opportunity."

Online Resources

For resources and further information on employing people with intellectual disabilities, and for background on the causes of certain intellectual disabilities, see the online version of this article at www.shrm.org/hrmagazine/05July.> RELATED ARTICLE: FEDERAL GUIDELINES AT A GLANCE

Following are highlights of the EEOC's recently released guidelines on employing people with intellectual disabilities:

* Reasonable accommodations. Examples of the kinds of accommodations that employees with intellectual disabilities may need include a job coach, training modifications, a modified work schedule, restructuring of nonessential functions, help in understanding job evaluations or disciplinary proceedings, or assistive devices (for instance, a phone with speed dial and large, clearly labeled buttons).

* Hiring process. "Even job applicants must be given reasonable accommodations," says Jennifer Lutz, an employment attorney at the Klinedinst firm in San Diego. Examples include providing someone to read or interpret application material, or replacing a written test with an expanded interview in which applicants are allowed to demonstrate, rather than describe, their skills.

* Disciplinary matters. "Just because somebody has a disability doesn't give them carte blanche to do whatever they want in a job," says Lutz. An employer may discipline an employee with an intellectual disability for misconduct as long as the employer imposes the same discipline on employees without disabilities.