Chapter 16
Vocational Rehabilitation
There’s a lot to be said for having a reason to get up in the morning. Your job is one of those reasons.
For many of us, our whole journey through education has been focused on one career goal. For others, that career choice is still a little blurry, but we get by. And we enjoy doing whatever we can. Heaven knows, you don’t have to be a career hound to find a job that meets your personal and financial needs.
There are three vital parts to job hunting. One is to figure out what you like to do. Then you find out what you can do. Last but not least, you assess what is out there that you can tap into.
WHERE TO START
Since your spinal cord injury, you may have started looking at your working life in a way you have not done before. This would include taking a second look at your job skills, possible job changes, and your interests. How did you get into the work you were doing before your injury? Did you select it or did it just kind of happen?
You may feel that since you were injured you have "lost" what you thought were important job skills. At what level is your injury? Has it caused you to lose some of the physical abilities that you had before? Well, don’t short-change yourself! You still have many job skills. You have just come to take most of them for granted. You can still communicate, persuade, teach, negotiate, direct, or listen. And how about personal traits you have developed over the years? Are you friendly, empathetic, curious, assertive, imaginative, or practical?
When you are up to it, you need to begin thinking about what job skills and personal traits you do have that you enjoy using and feel you do well. You might even want to try learning some new job skills. You can accept those skills you have and work at building them up. Only then can you begin to explore where and how they can be used in the job market. But rest assured that before you can sell yourself to an employer, you must know your product... YOU. You might want to look at the chapter on Psychosocial Adjustment.
HOW TO GET A JOB
Did you know...?
- Jobs in general: Ninety percent of these are not listed in want ads or with employment agents.
- Blue collar and white collar jobs: Sixty-three percent of these jobs are obtained through options pursued by the job seeker. They include contacts through friends and relatives.
- Professional, technical, and managerial jobs: Seventy-five percent of these are obtained through personal contacts.
In looking at numbers like that, it becomes clear that you need to keep your eyes and ears open for possible job options. You might even drum up a few of them on your own! Put a bug in someone’s ear. Lots of businesses give their staff bonuses for bringing new talent to them to fill open jobs. You’d be doing your friends a favor in asking them if they know of jobs where they work. If you get the job, they get the bonus!
Need Some Help?
You may be one of those lucky people who has always known what you wanted to do. A spinal cord injury hasn’t changed that. You may also be the type who knows exactly how to get what you want, too. You are a rare breed. Most of us, however, spend a major part of our work lives searching for the "right" job. We change jobs often as we test our skills and interests in different workplaces. Each time you have to make a job change, though, it is a huge task that none of us relishes!
Motivation to get out there into the field is always hard. This can be worse if you aren’t even sure where to start. Try this: Set up a plan of attack, take a deep breath, and JUMP!!
That’s all well and good, you say, that’s also not very realistic. I still don’t know where to start. Can you give me more to go on?
To begin with, if you do well with self-motivated projects, there are many books and computer internet sites that will be useful to you. They provide a step-by-step approach to matching your chosen skills with a suitable job. Your public library may have many helpful resources. One of the best-known is the Occupational Outlook Handbook, which is updated regularly by the US Department of Labor.
Some of us, though, do better in career planning if we get personal help. That is the time when you should call on your vocational rehabilitation counselor. Whether you just wanted to discuss some career concerns or you are ready to start some serious planning, this staff member is prepared to help you.
VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION
Vocational rehabilitation can be a really good resource. Specialists in this field can help you with career planning. Vocational rehabilitation counselors and occupational therapists work together with you. They will help you assess your job interests and skills, academic abilities, personal traits, and physical capabilities. They can help you set career goals and define ways for you to achieve those goals. If you are ready to go to work, they can help you plan your mode of attack on the job market.
Vocational Counseling and Testing
Vocational counseling and testing are provided to help you with the tasks listed below:
- Assess your skills and interests.
- Develop an appropriate plan for returning to work.
- Get retraining.
- Find meaningful unpaid activity.
- Improve your job finding skills.
This may include a referral to the state division of vocational rehabilitation. If you are a veteran and have a service-connected disability, you may be referred to chapter 31 of the VA Vocational Rehabilitation Program. These are programs for further planning and financial assistance with retraining. During the first stages of your rehabilitation program, you may be referred to Occupational Therapy (OT) for pre-vocational testing. This looks at your job skills through the use of simulated work samples. You may be given a Physical Capacities Evaluation. This can help assess your physical ability to perform varied types of work.
Your vocational rehabilitation may also include a work hardening program (or a pre-vocational job station program, as it is sometimes called). This is a chance for you to work at a variety of real jobs to help you assess your job interests, skills, physical endurance, and work habits. The program is structured so that you begin working (on an unpaid basis) a few hours per week, depending on your own vocational needs. These hours may increase gradually as your rehabilitation schedule and physical tolerance allow.
There are many different state and federally funded on-the-job training (OJT) programs. If you are a service-connected disabled veteran, you can apply for on-the-job training through the VA vocational rehabilitation program. These OJT programs often pay a part of your salary for the first few weeks of your employment. This is a nice incentive for the employer to hire you and give you training on the job! OJT programs can be a good way for you to develop job skills and gain work experience.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a law that was established to protect you from discrimination in hiring. You need to know your rights under this law when you start your job search.
Job site modification and equipment modification are also there for you. These programs help you become employable in a certain kind of job. The purpose of all this is very simple. It is for you to find a job that you are good at and that you like. The faith you have in yourself will grow as you learn more about what you like to do and what you can do. Then, when you do start looking for a job, you will be able to show your best effort. You will find that you are hired by people who feel you can be of great value to the company.
Web Sites
www50.pcepd.gov/pcepd
Information about the President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities and state liaisons.
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Vocational Rehabilitation