How Fiona found confidence and inclusion at work

For a person with disability, starting a new job can cause a lot of anxiety – how will my employer and colleagues receive me? What if I can’t do the job? What if there aren’t the required adjustments put in place? 

Simply undergoing the job interview can be extra hard to navigate, and often the weight of unconscious bias and stigma from employers can overshadow the applicant and their skills or qualifications. 

My job interview at Yooralla was different, though.  

Although, the prospect fills me with an unfathomable amount of anxiety, I always try to address the fact that I have cerebral palsy at the interview phase. This allows some of the pressure to settle a little from the very beginning. 

When I came for my interview at Collins Street, my disability wasn’t treated like a burden and one thing that I’ll always remember when I disclosed my disability is that I was asked what Yooralla could do to assist me in my employment, should I be successful – I don’t think I had ever been asked that at an interview, or even during any previous employment. It came across as a simple question, creating a safe space in the interview room and put me at ease. 

I commenced my role as Administration Coordinator for Home and Specialist Services, then called, Residential and Respite Support Services in December 2019 – just before the Covid pandemic hit. I’ve been at Yooralla for almost six years now.  

After my employment started, my manager greatly assisted my transition into my new role; I discovered that when doing referee checks, she had asked my previous supervisors for their feedback on how she could best support me and followed through with their suggestions.  

Not only did this enable me to perform at my best but it helped reduce my anxiety about starting the new position and allowed me to thrive in the role. 

They were simple steps which made a massive impact. 

Small adjustments like allowing me to ease into the role; making sufficient time to learn each task and having regular catch ups – even if informal, were implemented as if they were carried out across the board, not part of any special treatment. 

My manager was really accessible, making me feel comfortable coming to her for help. She always made it clear that I could reach out to her anytime if I had any questions or issues. She also didn’t make assumptions about my capabilities.  

Examples like these show that when active support and workplace adjustments are put into place, it can make a vast difference to how someone feels in the workplace and allows them to succeed; An opportunity that should be provided to all employees.