Providing employment support for Deaf New Zealanders

Providing employment support for Deaf New Zealanders

In October 2016, Brett* came to Deaf Aotearoa, one of the Supported Employment Service providers, for pre-employment support. Brett had been seeking employment for more than a year before deciding to get support from Deaf Aotearoa. Deaf Aotearoa supported Brett by helping him to update his CV, preparing cover letters for job applications and organising training support funding for interpreters when he had interviews.

In early 2017, Brett had an interview with a hotel for a housekeeping role. He attended the interview with an interpreter and a Deaf Aotearoa facilitator as a support person. The interview was successful, and he was offered the housekeeping role. The Deaf Aotearoa facilitator helped explain the employment contract to Brett to ensure he understood it.

Throughout Brett’s 90-day trial with the hotel, Deaf Aotearoa provided a number of in-work employment supports such as:

• providing information about Deaf culture to the Senior Housekeeper and shared some resources and strategies for communication with Brett
• organising meetings with the employer at times when Brett was distressed
• suggesting strategies for ensuring clear communication between the employer and Brett.

Following the trial period, Brett received a workplace staff award. He later secured a new role at another hotel.