Wendy Parent

Employment satisfaction of individuals with spinal cord injury.

OBJECTIVES Community reentry after a spinal cord injury is a long-term integrative process, because individuals must adjust to an extraordinary new set of circumstances. In this study, quality-of-life and work satisfaction variables associated with employed or unemployed individuals with spinal cord injury were examined. METHODS Quality-of-life and work satisfaction variables associated with 109 employed or unemployed individuals with spinal cord injury were examined by using an employment satisfaction survey. RESULTS Most of those employed indicated that they would either change jobs or some employment variable such as duties, supervisor, or hours worked. Participants who were not working attributed unemployment to an array of factors including ongoing health problems, lack of transportation, and impact of and/or lost disability benefits. Both groups offered feedback related to information provided to them by medical professionals about return-to-work resources. CONCLUSIONS The following three themes emerged from this analysis: (1) more comprehensive provider training about spinal cord injury is needed; (2) increased communication between consumer and family would be beneficial; and (3) an increase in the flexibility and availability of services would help to ensure access to essential care.

A Report on Competitive Employment Histories of Persons Labeled Severely Mentally Retarded.

The purpose of this article is to describe the competitive employment experiences of 21 persons labeled severely mentally retarded. Over an 8-year period from 1978 to 1986, 21 persons with measured intelligence levels under 40 were competitively employed with ongoing or intermittent job site support. A cumulative total of over

The Impact of Behavioral Deficits on Employment Retention: An Illustration from Supported Employment

230,000 of unsubsidized wages was earned. Significant vocational problems included slow work rate and lack of appropriate social skills. The majority of the persons worked in part-time, entry-level service positions. The major suggestions for improving the quality of vocational interventions included (a) more creative and comprehensive job development and (b) more powerful systematic instructional techniques. It was concluded that, while this report extends the concerns of competitive employment literature to persons with more severe intellectual handicaps, much more innovative work needs to be performed with individuals who exhibit profound disabilities.

Overcoming obstacles to community reentry for persons with spinal cord injury: assistive technology, ADA and self-advocacy

Supported employment has emerged as a viable alternative to conventional rehabilitation approaches for tens of thousands of individuals previously excluded from employment opportunities. However, the ability to retain a job in business or industry for an extended period of time remains a challenge for many supported employment participants. An exploratory investigation of the reasons for job separation of 1,484 individuals participating in supported employment programs in eight states was completed to investigate behavioral characteristics that facilitate or hinder employment retention. Results illustrate that employment retention is affected by a wide variety of vocational, behavioral, economic, and external factors. A number of different approaches currently used to address behavioral difficulties in employment settings are discussed, including compensatory strategies, self-management, and co-worker supports.

From School to Competitive Employment for Young Adults with Mental Retardation: Transition in Practice

This article describes the barriers that people with Spinal Cord Injuries (SCI) face when attempting to re-integrate back into their community. We stress the importance of having a basic knowledge of rights, knowing how to use them and having the right supports to facilitate the reintegration process. Individuals with disabilities have become familiar with laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Technology-Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act (1988) and the Social Security Work Incentives. Through their expertise and/or personal experience, they describe how having a knowledge of those laws can playa critical role in making re-integration possible. Before knowledge can truly be power, customers must be equipped with the tools to put that knowledge into action. This article explains the whole thrust of the self-advocacy component is based on the theory that knowledge is power. Both the basic and the mentor training were created and are being delivered through the Self-Advocacy Leadership Institutes. These Institutes were designed so people with SCI will have the knowledge and tools to utilize their rights. Even when customers have knowledge about their rights under the ADA, a knowledge of Assistive Technology and

Critical Issues in Planning Vocational Services in the 1990s

PAUL WEHMAN is Professor and WENDY PARENT is Research Associate both at Virginia Commonwealth University; WENDY WOOD is Executive Director of the Association for Persons in Supported Employment, Richmond, VA; CLARE M. TALBERT is Enclave Developer for the Cooperative Supportive Project, George Mason University; CONNIEJASPER is an Employment Specialist with Alexandria Public Schools; SHEILA MILLER is a Special Education Teacher in Chesterfield County Public Schools; JOANN MARCHANT was Principal at the Virginia Randolph Special Education Center; and ROSZIE WALKER was Guidance Counselor at Amelia Street School, Richmond, VA. LEAVING SCHOOL and entering the adult world is a major transition for all students. Once students no longer attend school generally there are greater demands plated upon them by members of society. It is usually expected, for example, that one will begin full-time employment and begin to live independently. This should also be true of young adults who are labeled mentally retarded. However, in order for students with mental retardation to be productive members of the

Corrigendum to “Overcoming obstacles to community reentry for persons with spinal cord injury: assistive technology, ADA and self-advocacy” [J. Vocat. Rehabil. 9 (1997) 171–186]

Efforts to predict the future are always difficult, even under the best of circumstances. In trying to assess what vocational opportunities will be available to people with mental retardation as this century closes, several difficulties come to mind. First, vocational programs depend heavily on the overall labor market and economy. As Stark and Goldsbury (1988) point out, one cannot analyze future trends for persons with disabilities out of the context of society as a whole. There is not a clear picture as of yet about how inflation, interest rates, or automation and mechanization will affect the labor force. We do know that there will probably continue for sometime to be a labor shortage in entry-level service occupations. Persons with mental retardation should be able to expand their growth into these positions.

Consumer Choice and Empowerment in Supported Employment Services: Issues and Strategies:

a Rehabilitation Research and Training Center, Virginia Comnnonwealth University, 1314 West Main Street, PO Box 842011, Richmond, VA 23284-2011, USA b Virginia Department of Rehabilitation Services, 8004 Franklin Fanns Drive, Richmond, VA 23288, USA c3105 Park Avenue, Richmond, VA 23221, USA d 1653 Ashton Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23464, USA e Department of Rehabilitation Services, 307 County Street, Portsmouth, VA 23704, USA fDepartment of Human Counseling and Developmental Ser~ices, College of Education, The University of Georgia, 402 Aderhold Hall, Athens, GA 30602-7142, USA