Retail Asia 2018 RA September.October 2018 (Online) | Page 32

FOCUS
they find a location that is accessible.
“Integrating persons with disabilities into
the social environment is a key reason
that they have longer tenures with the
company,” he shared.
Introducing initiatives such as a
‘buddy system’ also helps. Orientating
the staff who would be working closely
with the new hires with disabilities
will help facilitate communication and
empower the staff to be an effective
buddy.
Liu also advocates matching an
employee with disability with a buddy
when he or she joins the company. “It is
important, in this case, to match a buddy
who can also be a coach. One important
task of the buddy will be to help the
newcomer mingle and socialise with
other employees, and eventually integrate
into the workplace,” she said.
MINDS’ Shen adds it is important
to communicate the differently-abled
employees’ support needs to the co-
workers to seek their patience and
understanding while mentoring them on
the job. For example, an employee with
intellectual disability will progress and
perform better with clear, concise and
consistent job instructions and job tasks.
Assigning a co-worker buddy to mentor
employees with intellectual disability in
the company can greatly help them adapt
to the working environment and culture
“As long as you are willing to
do the work, there will be great
payoffs for the diversity
and sustainability of
your workforce.”
— Dr Marissa Lee Medjeral-Mills,
Executive Director,
Disabled People’s Association (DPA)
better, build their motivation, confidence
and sustainability on the job, he says.
Getting onboard
It is equally important to communicate
and get the full support from the whole
company and have a planned support
strategy on how to integrate differently-
abled individuals before employing
them. Medjeral-Mills highlights that it is
very important to make sure that there
is ‘buy-in’ from all levels of a company
when hiring persons with disabilities.
“Sometimes management wants to make
their workforce more inclusive, but they
do not prepare the rest of the staff and
then there are issues down the road with
Instead of creating jobs to hire from a particular disability group. Employers should look to
their existing job opening and be open to modifying the roles so that they do not rule out
various persons with disabilities.
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Retail Asia September/October 2018
integration, especially social integration
in the workplace.”
Preparing the workforce can be as
simple as making sure that there are some
trainings that create a safe space for staff
to ask questions about disability and how
to be more inclusive. It is also important
to make sure that companies look at their
Human Resources (HR) policies to see if
they are inclusive, she adds, and that the
new recruits with disabilities know who
they can turn to if there are any issues
with integrating.
SIRS’ Liu suggests retailers must
also be in touch with staff at strategic
intervals, review what has been achieved
and provide constructive feedback.
“They must also encourage creative
thinking and recognise efforts by people
with disabilities. Celebrate wins — big
or small, and reward success. Creating
goals is also crucial. Don’t just delegate
mundane tasks but develop them to grow
into higher value-add employees,” she
advises.
On that note, DPA also observes
that some employers display a lack of
awareness that persons with disabilities,
like all employees,also desire career
progression options. “Retailers should
try to ensure their performance reviews
processes are inclusive so that employees
with disabilities can progress up the ranks
as they mature in their role,” Medjeral-
Mills advises.
SPD also notes that sometimes
companies make certain assumptions
about the needs and capabilities of
persons with disabilities which can often
lead to misunderstandings. For instance,
not all persons with hearing impairments
have cochlear implants, wear hearing
aids or are able to lip-read. They may
need support in written or visual
instructions which can be addressed