[blindlaw] FW: The Wall Street Journal: When It Comes to Hiring, Blind Workers Face Bias

Ross Doerr rumpole at roadrunner.com
Wed Mar 20 19:12:36 UTC 2013 

Susan, I can relate to everything you say about your experiences.
I had one attorney, a gentleman who had been the attorney general of the 
State I was living in at the time, ask me, and this is a direct
quote:
"Did you take the real Bar Exam, or one of those tests for handicapped 
people?"
He compounded things by asking me a follow up question, again a direct 
quote:
"Have you learned how to use a telephone yet?"
The two foregoing quotes were spoken to me during a job interview with him.
There are just no words.
This is not unusual in my experiences over the past 25 years.
I would hasten to add that education of such individuals is not as easy as 
it may sound. It requires a degree of patience and personality management 
that can tax your blood pressure medications.
Sighted coworkers or counterparts find this aspect of blindness to be so 
alien as to be questioned as being the truth.
I recall explaining the barrage of adaptive software and hardware that I 
brought into my office with me when I began my last job, to the office 
administrator. She was completely confused as to why I needed to kow so much 
about "other software" compared to sighted lawyers in the office. That in 
itself was an exercise in education.
So, while "we" need to educate the hiring public and calm their fears, the 
entire exercise pre-supposes that they want to hear it in the first place. 
IE: it really takes people out of their comfort zone.
I'm sure I haven't said anything here that most on the list have not heard 
or experienced to one degree or another on their own.
I'd close by suggesting that being a blind professional requires more 
patience and tact than a sighted counterpart, and also requires one to hold 
in frustration and at times, curb their temper owing to the hiring public's 
lack of education and resistance to being educated.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Susan Kelly" <Susan.Kelly at pima.gov>
To: "Blind Law Mailing List" <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 2:31 PM
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] FW: The Wall Street Journal: When It Comes to 
Hiring,Blind Workers Face Bias


> The public truly does have many misconceptions that need to be corrected
> at every opportunity.  I am lucky that I was already employed when
> things went from bad to much worse vision-wise, but the reaction of
> co-workers and others at court was astounding.   Otherwise intelligent
> and compassionate people asked me such questions as "how long will they
> let you keep working?" and "why don't you just kick back and collect the
> SSI benefits?"  As a young woman with student loan debts, a newish
> house, and most importantly, a brain and self-respect, it has been
> difficult to avoid questioning their intellectual abilities!
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blindlaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Rod
> Alcidonis, Esq.
> Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 11:00 AM
> To: Blind Law Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [blindlaw] FW: The Wall Street Journal: When It Comes to
> Hiring,Blind Workers Face Bias
>
> The study did not tell me much I did not know. I always know that
> companies have been putting up a show by hiring a few blind employees to
> make themselves look good but not really because the person was the
> "most qualified for the job." It hurts when one knows that he/she did
> not get a job and it was because of his/her blindness and not due to a
> lack of qualification. I have been there and it feels terrible.
>
> The organized blind movements must seriouslly consider enhancing the
> approach at educating the public about blindness to also focus on
> employment. There is a serious lack of understanding out there. Crazy.
>
> Rod Alcidonis, Esq.
> Alcidonis Law Office
> 2824 Cottman Avenue
> Suite 15
> Philadelphia, PA 19149
> O: (215) 305-8085
> Attorney at alcidonislaw.com
> www.alcidonislaw.com
>
> Personal injury, Immigration, and No-fault divorce/custody -----Original
> Message-----
> From: Michael Fry
> Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 11:43 AM
> To: Blind Law Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [blindlaw] FW: The Wall Street Journal: When It Comes to
> Hiring, Blind Workers Face Bias
>
> An interesting article.  Thanks for posting it.  The reality is that a
> visually impaired person trying to get hired has an uphill battle that
> is almost unimaginable to most of the general work force.
>
> I have a job as a government attorney.  I am so grateful for it.  I'm
> leaving it, however, since I'm moving because my wife was accepted into
> a great business school across the country.  I am so worried that I
> won't find another job, especially as an attorney.
>
> When I weight all the factors, it's clear that she and I are making the
> right move.  Nonetheless, this terrible anxiety about finding a new job
> is a direct result of my visual impairment.  If I had normal vision,
> finding a new job would be so much easier than it is going to be because
> of my visual impairment.
>
> Has anyone ever had the experience of going from practicing law to the
> Business Enterprise Program?  Is any one in the business enterprise
> program?  If so, what is your experience with it?  How much money does a
> BEP person make?
>
> Mike
>
> On Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 6:02 AM, Norman, Gary C. (CMS/OSORA) <
> Gary.Norman at cms.hhs.gov> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> >-----Original Message-----
>> >From: aavia at googlegroups.com [mailto:aavia at googlegroups.com] On
>> >Behalf Of Barrett, Pshon (USAMSS)
>> >Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 8:59 AM
>> >To: aavia at googlegroups.com
>> >Subject: FW: The Wall Street Journal: When It Comes to Hiring, Blind
>> Workers
>> >Face Bias
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >-----Original Message-----
>> >From: FedAccessibility at yahoogroups.com
>> >[mailto:FedAccessibility at yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Jamal Mazrui
>> >Sent: Tuesday, March 19, 2013 4:37 PM
>> >To: 'fedaccessibility at yahoogroups.com'
>> >(fedaccessibility at yahoogroups.com)
>> >Subject: [FedAccessibility] FW: The Wall Street Journal: When It
>> >Comes to Hiring, Blind Workers Face Bias
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >The Wall Street Journal: When It Comes to Hiring, Blind Workers Face
>> >Bias
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >When It Comes to Hiring, Blind Workers Face Bias
>> >
>> >
>> >The Wall Street Journal
>> >
>> >*         March 18, 2013, 10:27 AM
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >By Leslie Kwoh
>> >
>> >When it comes to hiring blind employees, many employers remain
> skeptical.
>> >
>> >Bosses often assume blind workers cost more and produce less,
>> >according to a new study. They also believe blind workers are more
>> >prone to workplace accidents and less reliable than other workers.
>> >The study, scheduled to be released this week by the nonprofit
>> >National Industries for the Blind, polled 400 human-resources and
>> >hiring managers
>> at
>> >a mix of large and small U.S.-based companies. The group commissioned
>
>> >the survey, in part, to shed light on why roughly 70% of the 3.5
>> >million
>> people
>> >working-age Americans are not employed. (Legally blind Americans are
>> >eligible for Social Security disability, according to NIB.)
>> >
>> >NIB president and chief executive Kevin Lynch described the survey
>> >results as a "terrible surprise." With the exception of certain jobs
>> >that require driving or steering, "there are very few jobs that a
>> >person who's blind
>> is not
>> >capable of doing," he says.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >The findings reveal a disconnect between what employers say and what
>> >they do. While the majority of executives claim they want to hire and
>
>> >train disabled workers, many view blind workers as an inconvenience.
>> >
>> >Hiring managers tended to be slightly more negative than
>> >human-resources managers, but overall results were similar.
>> >
>> >*         Among hiring managers, most respondents (54%) felt there
> were
>> few
>> >jobs at their company that blind employees could perform, and 45%
>> >said accommodating such workers would require "considerable expense."
>> >
>> >*         Forty-two percent of hiring managers believe blind
> employees
>> need
>> >someone to assist them on the job; 34% said blind workers are more
>> >likely
>> to
>> >have work-related accidents.
>> >
>> >*         One-quarter of respondents said blind employees are "more
>> sensitive"
>> >than other employees; the same percentage said they were "more
>> >difficult to supervise."
>> >
>> >*         Twenty-three percent of hiring managers said blind
> employees
>> are not
>> >as productive as their colleagues, and 19% believe these employees
>> >have a higher absentee rate.
>> >
>> >Blindness is largely absent from corporate conversation about
>> >employees with disabilities with the exception of sporadic lawsuits:
>> >Last August, Hawaiian Electric Co. agreed
>> ><http://finance.yahoo.com/news/hawaiian-
>> >electric-settle-discrimination-lawsuit-140923965.html>  to pay
>> >$50,000 to settle a discrimination suit by a partially blind
>> >employee, the AP
>> reported.
>> >And in December, Bloomberg reported that a blind ex-banker at the
>> >Royal Bank of Scotland Group
>> ><http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=RBS.LN
>> >>  lost a suit <http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-12-11/blind-
>> >banker-loses-rbs-discrimination-lawsuit-at-u-dot-k-dot-tribunal>
>> >banker-loses-rbs-discrimination-lawsuit-at-u-dot-k-dot-tribunal> seek
>> >banker-loses-rbs-discrimination-lawsuit-at-u-dot-k-dot-tribunal> ing
>> >disability benefits.
>> >
>> >Rarer still is news about companies like apparel business SustainU,
>> >based
>> in
>> >West Virginia, which hires blind and visually impaired employees to
>> >man
>> its
>> >factory, according to the New York Times
>> ><http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/25/business/sustainu-an-apparel-
>> >maker-turns-to-blind-workers.html?_r=0> . The company said there was
>> >no difference in the cost and quality of its goods when compared to
>> >that of other U.S. manufacturers.
>> >
>> >Companies may have to invest some money to provide "reasonable
>> >accommodations" for a blind employee, as required by the Americans
>> >with Disabilities Act. However,  says NIB's Lynch, many computers and
>
>> >smartphones already have built-in features that enable users to
>> >change
>> font
>> >size and light intensity. Installing voice technology that allows
>> computers to
>> >"read" text to a blind employee costs just $1,500 to $2,000, he says.
>
>> >The American Foundation for the Blind has estimated
>> ><http://www.afb.org/section.aspx?FolderID=2&SectionID=7&TopicID=116&S
>> >ubTopicID=70&DocumentID=2887>  that 88% of employee accommodations
>> >cost less than $1,000.
>> >
>> >As for health insurance, company rates are determined by the number
>> >of incidents among the entire group - not individual employees - no
>> >evidence suggests that blind employees incur more costs than other
> workers, Mr.
>> >Lynch says.
>> >
>> >Blind employees may also be more loyal than most, he adds. A DePaul
>> >University study
>> ><http://www.disabilityworks.org/downloads/disabilityworksDePaulStudyC
>> >o mprehensiveResults.pdf>  from 2007 found that employees with
>> >disabilities were likely to stay on the job four months longer, on
>> >average, than employees without disabilities.
>> >
>> >The study also found that workers with disabilities took 1.24 fewer
>> >scheduled absences than non-disabled workers during a six-month
> period.
>> >But they took, on average, 1.13 more days of unscheduled absences.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
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