1. Ask not what employers can do for you……

2. Presenters Ms. Grainne Berrill Project Coordinator WALK PEER Programme (Louth) Ms. Carol Owen Walkways Coordinator (Wales) Ms. Rachel Stevens Director, Empowerall,

3. Introduction Human Potential-Challenges us to maximize! Our Beliefs - Disability & Careers? Traditional Services - How are we doing? Why should / would employers hire people with disabilities? How can we communicate better with employers to get people with disabilities into employment? The Walkways PEER Model.

4. Employment Pop Quiz Activity to set the context for the basis of needing to engage with employers on a business level to increase participation of people with disabilities in the open labour market

5. Don’t Waste my Potential Challenge your Beliefs

6. Beliefs Beliefs are not necessarily what’s true or factual in the real world. The power of each belief comes only from the individual believer. That means you can believe whatever you want to believe. As long as you believe it to be true, it will be true in your life.

7. Beliefs Consequently, you will attract events, experiences and people in your life to match your beliefs. For this reason, it is crucial to adopt only the beliefs that serve you and to let go of those beliefs that limit you. What are your beliefs about people with disabilities working in the open labour market?

8. Beliefs Analyse your beliefs? Are they helping or hindering? Do they move you forward or hold you back? Do your beliefs guide you to create a presence in someone’s life, that increases or decreases their independence?

9. Traditional Services Welfare Dependency Service Dependency Social Dependency Human Rights Dependency Do people that come into services ever leave? What does progression & career development look like for them?

10. What are your beliefs about people who have a disability and careers?

11. The Facts An ESRI report says, people with disabilities in Ireland are half as likely to be employed as their non-disabled peers. 36% of people with a disability are employed compared with 77% of other adults. Census 2011 shows that youth unemployment in Ireland is running at 38% while we are in a crisis at 14% in the general population.

12. What are the employers missing? An awareness of the capabilities of people with disabilities to do paid work i.e. sustain a job. An understanding of what supported employment is. The skills and confidence to communicate with people with disabilities. The business case for hiring people with disabilities. The law

13. Why should employers hire people with disabilities? It is the right thing to do! If they can do the job? Inclusion and diversity. Corporate social responsibility. It is the right thing to do! The Employment Equality Acts 1998-2011 outlaw discrimination on the grounds of disability in employment.

14. Why would employers hire people with disabilities People with disabilities can do the job. It made good business sense. If the right supports were in place for the employee. and the employer. If it had a positive effect on the workforce.

15. Walkways PEER Programme Providing Equal Employment Routes An innovative early intervention model, to engage and support progression towards education, training and economic activity Co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Ireland Wales Programme 2007-2013 (Interreg 4A) A person centered, collaborative approach which supports the development of individual personal progression plans and actions to achieve the individual’s employment goals

16. Walkways PEER Programme Beliefs Every person is able to do a job when and if the time is right in their lives. A job means getting paid for doing work at the open labour market rate, in the same way as other colleagues and having equal employment rights The number of hours per day or week that a person can actually work is different for everybody. Support to gain and maintain employment should be for as long as a person needs. No more and no less.

17. Walkways PEER Programme Approach Quality “Job Matching” is paramount before contacting employers. Know exactly what you want when you contact an employer. Focus on the hidden jobs market. Offer the employer something extra of value. Always do what you say you are going to do!

18. Walkways PEER Programme Experience Walkways PEER programme Video Walkways PEER participant talks of their experience on the programme An employer talks about their experience of hiring a Walkways PEER Participant Rachel Steven’s, Empowerall Evaluation team.

19. Conclusion Results of the “Employment Pop Quiz” Summary of presentation key points Questions & Answers Close