Cite: Gomes, Billy. "Employment Challenges for People With Disabilities - WeCo." WeCo. WeCo Accessibility Services, 14 Feb. 2014. Web. 12 Oct. 2016.
Question: How might characteristics that are unique to those who live with a disability, such as determination and hard work, influence one's ability to perform in their future careers?
Thoughts before reading: Living with a disability can definitely "build character". Learning to overcome everyday challenges and still push through to the goal of a college degree can show how self-motivated a person must be to work hard with no excuses. While I explained in my first paragraph about the negative stigmas many hold of disabled people, such as seeing them as "unable" and "different", this question should show the not-so-good as well as the good things that come from living with disability, and how these things could make someone just as competitive for a job as their able-bodied competitors.
Why I thought this source would be a good choice: The title of this source caught my attention: "Employment Challenges for People With Disabilities". Skimming the article, I could tell the author based their reasoning on personal experience which showed me that their opinion would be supported somehow.
Summarize- This article begins by stating how the unemployment rate for disabled individuals is twice as much as the unemployment rate for able-bodied individuals. Gomes explains the struggles a disabled employee of his endured before being hired by him in finding a job, even though she had the education and training. Gomes says how many employers do not want to mess with dealing with disabled employees, that it would take too much time and energy from them. However, Gomes believes that disabled people are some of the best workers because their life experience helps them overcome challenges and think of new solutions. The point of the article is to inform the audience as well as persuade employers to broaden their horizons in this area.
Think- I agree with much of what this source says, such as the fact that disabled individuals could prove to be outstanding employees. However, I would give more credit to the employers. The author states their concerns but does not explain them, making them sound like "bad guys". However, the role of an employer is to do what is best for the company, and with the common stereotypes society holds against disabled people, their concerns are understandable. This source confirms my prior thinking of how employers should think about the benefits as well as the disadvantages of hiring a disabled person.
Synthesize- This source connects also to my third source, explaining the good character traits that living with a disability can build. This source could be in conversation with one that objects the advantages of hiring disabled individuals, which I will try to find later on, possibly separate from the sources I journal. Looking at the different forms of synthesis, I conclude that it would depend on the individual's disability and the tasks associated with a specific job as to whether it could be worth it to hire them. Obviously some people with very serious disabilities cannot perform certain tasks, but they could possibly perform others that would not be expected of them, and they should here be given a chance. I think that all disabled people deserve to be looked at as equal candidates and their abilities weighed just as much as their disabilities when applying and competing for a job position.
Question and Plan- I will next tie in the role of higher education in all of this. I have found how disability affects employment, but I wonder, how does this change for those with a college degree? Does that make a difference?
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