Survey on employing persons with disabilities 2019
Employment News: Survey on working with colleagues with disabilities
It is never easy for persons with disabilities (PwDs) to be employed. On one hand, they need to be accepted by employers. On the other hand, their needs require the understanding from other colleagues. Front-line staff are often required to work with employees with disabilities, thus take a decisive role on whether they can adapt to the working environment.
In order to understand the thoughts of front-line staff on employing PwDs, “e-Connect” employment platform, which is jointly operated by the Hong Kong Society for Rehabilitation (HKSR) and five non-governmental organizations, conducted interviews and survey from December 2018 to January 2019. The approach and opinion of working and getting along with PwDs are understood through the interview with 300 front-line staff.
Centre on Research and Advocacy of HKSR is commissioned to conduct this study in which 318 people responded. Among the 267 analyzed survey. 136 of the respondents are working or have worked with persons with different types of disabilities, which includes physical disability, hearing impairment, visual impairment, mental illness, intellectual disability, chronic disease, speech and language impairment, specific learning difficulties, autism spectrum disorders, attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder etc. Majority of these 136 respondents appreciated the punctuality and integrity of PwDs. These respondents also believe that PwDs are more responsible and careful compared with others. However, PwDs are seemed to have less independence, confidence and determination, from the perspective of respondents.
Positive impacts of employing PwDs (responses from 73 interviewees)
| Impacts | Percentage |
| PwDs don’t quit easier/ are stable and reliable | 57.50% |
| PwDs have special talent/ work attentively/ assist in team work effectively | 45.20% |
| PwDs have steadfast dedication and can motivate colleagues/ improve working atmosphere | 45.20% |
Negative impacts of employing PwDs (responses from 14 interviewees)
| Impacts | Percentage |
| PwDs have communication problems with other front-line staff | 71.40% |
| PwDs’ low working efficiency may drag down team’s performance | 42.90% |
| Workload is unevenly distributed among PwDs and other colleagues | 35.70% |
| PwDs’ emotional fluctuation may affect both individual and team’s work | 35.70% |
Concerns from front-line staff who has not worked with PwDs
| Concerns | Percentage |
| Insufficient space in office | 36.8% |
| Uneven work distribution | 29.6% |
| Low communication skills and social capabilities | 27.2% |
Mr Martin Ting, Manager of HKSR Vocational Rehabilitation and Retraining Centre and representative of “e-Connect”, pointed out, “the study shows that most front-line staff who are working or have worked closely with PwDs have positive comments, therefore the possible communication and interpersonal problems between PwDs and colleagues are not as serious as expected. “e-Connect” recommends the government to provide more resources to solve the problems arose in the employment of PwDs, thus build a suitable working environment for them.
