From Work to Include
"Unfortunately, most individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) in Indiana continue to be served in segregated day service and residential environments, despite decades of demonstrations that individuals can live, work, and play in integrated community settings if provided appropriate supports. As of 2021, less than 25% of Hoosiers with I/DD are competitively employed. This contrasts with states like Washington where greater than 50% are in community integrated employment (CIE). Why the difference? One reason is that some individuals with I/DD, their families, and service providers have concerns that have not been addressed. There are many myths and misperceptions about CIE and the type of supports that are available. To change expectations, we must address their concerns and misunderstandings. Work to Include continues to provide information to Indiana stakeholders. This article focuses on the myth: not everyone can work in the community because some people are just too disabled. The truth is that given the right supports, people with significant disabilities can engage in meaningful work. For the past 30+ years, community rehabilitation programs have demonstrated how to support individuals with the most significant disabilities in achieving competitive integrated employment. Indiana passed the “Employment First” law in 2017 which requires the state to focus on CIE as the first and preferred outcome for working age adults with disabilities. The question is not “Can a person work?”, but rather “What does each person need to work?” Customized employment has proven that if you match the job to each individuals’ skills and interests, and appropriate accommodations and supports are provided, people with significant disabilities can engage in CIE. Technological advances have made workplaces even more accessible for people with disabilities. Studies have shown that many, if not most, adults with disabilities who spend their days in sheltered day programs would prefer to work in a real job in the community. As noted above, states have had great success in shifting to CIE, including Vermont, which has closed its sheltered workshops over 30 years ago. Vermont’s business community became a strong ally by consistently hiring employees, many of whom had similar support needs to people labeled as unemployable outside Vermont. How can we help individuals with disabilities and their families see the possibilities for integrated employment? Migliore et al. (2008) noted that service providers must directly address the reasons some have chosen to stay in segregated settings. Reasons cited include perceptions of safety issues in the community, loss of the workshop social environment, and worries about comparable supports throughout the day and year. In their review of agencies that have shifted their services to CIE, Pat Rogan and Susan Rinne (2011) found that successful service providers involved key stakeholders at all points of the transformation process from sheltered to integrated employment. This included individualizing planning with a focus on the whole person and needed employment supports. Staff received training and mentoring in employment best practices, so those identified supports could be provided. Key to implementation was adequate state funding for individualized, flexible, and stable services for integrated employment and meaningful lifestyles. It is wonderful that agencies and our Indiana state agencies are working to make the shift from segregated to integrated employment services. In order to achieve employment goals and address fears, families and individuals with disabilities must be “front and center” helping to plan a new system with real jobs and real wages, in our communities."
Comments