REGINA – There are many daily challenges for somebody in a wheelchair, but securing a job shouldn’t be one of them.
Robert Kakakaway was born and lives with cerebral palsy but his limited mobility doesn’t stop him from working.
“Just because your legs don’t work, or don’t work well doesn’t mean your mind doesn’t work,” he said Wednesday.
Kakakaway has held down a job for the past five years but considers himself lucky to have the job.
800,000 disabled people in Canada remain unemployed, although they’re able to work, and a third have a post-secondary education.
Tanja Ignatiuk, program Manager at the Regina Branch of the Saskatchewan Abilities Council, said the main challenge for people with disabilities seeking work are employers’ assumptions about their abilities.
“It’s the attitudes. It goes back to people’s perceptions of disabilities and this notion that somehow people with disabilities need to be cared for opposed to viewing people with disabilities as having skills, talents, needs and wants like everyone else, and having a real value in society,” she added.
New research at the University of Regina is part of a Canadian study looking at ways to not only assist those physically disabled from finding a job, but secure meaningful employment.
Sean Tucker is a professor in the Faculty of Business at the U of R and leading the research for Saskatchewan’s contribution to the study.
He argues that not only is working a basic human right, but more self-sufficient people contributing financially to the community makes a better society.
“It’s not just getting a job. It’s how satisfying is the work? Are they able to apply all their skills? Are they able to think at their jobs? Do they have autonomy, do they have control? Do they drive satisfaction out of their work?”
Kakakaway adds that his job means so much more than just earning a paycheck.
“It just helps with my quality of life,” he explained. “I’ve been able to meet all kinds of different people from all walks of life.”
More than 50 researchers and community partners across Canada are contributing to the six million dollar study.
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