Pathways to Employment and Quality of Life for Apprenticeship and Traineeship Graduates with Disabilities (original) (raw)
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Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation
Whilst the literature consistently argues that vocational education and training, including apprenticeships and traineeships, contribute to positive employment outcomes for people with disability, little is documented regarding their post-course outcomes, particularly over time. This paper presents a retrospective outcome analysis of 253 apprentices and trainees with disability who were placed and supported by EDGE Employment Solutions (EDGE) between 2000 and 2010. EDGE, established in 1984 as a Disability Employment Service (DES) in Perth, Western Australia, has actively pursued apprenticeships and traineeship for people with disability in Australia since the 1990s. Post-course outcomes, including income, hours worked, and job durability, were analysed and compared with matched pairs of current EDGE registrants with similar socio-demographic characteristics who had not commenced an apprenticeship or traineeship.
Participation in and Completion of Vocational Education and Training for People with a Disability
Australian Economic Review, 2011
Improving the educational outcomes of people with a disability is seen as key in helping improve their employment and life prospects. This article uses Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey data and multivariate estimation to examine whether people with a disability face barriers in participating in and completing a vocational education and training qualification, a highly accessible and flexible mode of education. Overall, we find that people with a disability are not disadvantaged in terms of participation, but are disadvantaged in terms of completion, especially those with more limiting conditions and those with mental health issues who have low levels of social support.
Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation
This paper presents an amalgamation of three sequential research projects conducted by EDGE Employment Solutions over the past decade. The first project, commenced in 1999, was a local initiative to increase the number of apprentices and trainees with disability being supported by EDGE. The completion rate for participants in this project was equivalent to that of people without disability undertaking apprenticeships and traineeships in Australia. However, it was found that Group Training Organisations, who hire apprentices and trainees to then place them with different employers, did not have the necessary skills or resources to place and support people with disability. To fill this gap, the second research project, undertaken in 2002, surveyed all 180 Group Training Organisations operating in Australia. This was followed by a site visit of six GTOs who were most successful in their disability efforts, to discern best practice in placing and supporting apprentices and trainees with disability. The third research project, which built on the findings of the previous two projects, was initiated in 2003 and enlisted 20 Group Training Organisations and 20 Disability Employment Services from around Australia to form partnerships to capitalise on their complementary expertise and resources. Apprenticeship and traineeship completion rates for participants in the third project surpassed those for people without disability in
Vocational education and training and people with a disability: a review of the research
2008
This work has been produced by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) under the National Vocational Education and Training Research and Evaluation (NVETRE) Program, which is coordinated and managed by NCVER on behalf of the Australian Government and state and territory governments. Funding is provided through the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this publication may be reproduced by any process without written permission. Requests should be made to NCVER. The NVETRE program is based upon priorities approved by ministers with responsibility for vocational education and training (VET). This research aims to improve policy and practice in the VET sector. For further information about the program go to the NCVER website http://www.ncver.edu.au. The author/project team was funded to undertake this research via a grant under the NVETRE program. These grants are awarded to organisations through a competitive process, in which NCVER does not participate. The views and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author/project team and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Australian Government, state and territory governments or NCVER.
Vocational status and perceived well-being of workers with disabilities
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 2012
Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the different employment statuses of under-employment, temporary employment, unemployment and non-participation in the labor force are associated with perceived well-being among persons with disabilities. Design/methodology/approach -The authors used data from the 2006 Participation and Activity Limitation Survey (PALS) conducted by Statistics Canada to develop six categories of employment status. OLS regression analysis was used for hypothesis testing. Findings -Findings indicated that fully utilized permanent employees show the highest level of life satisfaction while unemployed persons searching for work have the lowest levels of life satisfaction and the highest levels of perceived workplace discrimination. Permanent employees whose skills are greatly underutilized show the second-lowest level of life satisfaction and equally high perceived workplace discrimination as unemployed persons. Non-participants in the labor force show life satisfaction levels similar to those of permanent moderately underutilized employees as well as temporary employees, but report relatively little workplace discrimination. Originality/value -The study links vocational status to the psychological well-being of persons with disabilities in a large representative sample covering the full spectrum of disability types and occupational statuses. As such, it validates conclusions from smaller studies examining single organizations or focusing on workers with specific types of disabilities.
Vocational Statuses and Perceived Well-being of Workers with Disabilities
… and Inclusion: An …, 2012
Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the different employment statuses of under-employment, temporary employment, unemployment and non-participation in the labor force are associated with perceived well-being among persons with disabilities. Design/methodology/approach -The authors used data from the 2006 Participation and Activity Limitation Survey (PALS) conducted by Statistics Canada to develop six categories of employment status. OLS regression analysis was used for hypothesis testing. Findings -Findings indicated that fully utilized permanent employees show the highest level of life satisfaction while unemployed persons searching for work have the lowest levels of life satisfaction and the highest levels of perceived workplace discrimination. Permanent employees whose skills are greatly underutilized show the second-lowest level of life satisfaction and equally high perceived workplace discrimination as unemployed persons. Non-participants in the labor force show life satisfaction levels similar to those of permanent moderately underutilized employees as well as temporary employees, but report relatively little workplace discrimination. Originality/value -The study links vocational status to the psychological well-being of persons with disabilities in a large representative sample covering the full spectrum of disability types and occupational statuses. As such, it validates conclusions from smaller studies examining single organizations or focusing on workers with specific types of disabilities.
Employability of Vocational School Leavers with Disabilities
Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2014
Employability of vocational school leavers with disabilities has been often an issue at the national and international levels. The purpose of this study is to identify the employability and working patterns of vocational school leavers with disabilities. The survey involved 99 school leavers with disabilities who have had previous vocational training at a vocational school for special needs. Data were collected using a set of questionnaires and were statistically analysed. Chi-square test was also used to identify the difference between types of disability with job fields which are relevant to their vocational skills. The result showed that 69 school leavers were employed with 24 of them are currently working in the area related to the skill trained in the vocational school. The chi-square results showed a significant difference between school leavers' type of disability and the employment gained based on their trained vocational skills. Employability of school leavers with disabilities has reached almost 70%, but unfortunately most of them were not employed based on their vocational skills from school. Improvements can be made by reviewing appropriate job market which suits with the type of disability.