Free Brain Injury Employment Challenges Essay Sample
In the world nowadays, working is not easy at all particularly to those who have had injuries in the brain. Brain injury is something new in the current world hence workers who have at some point undergone these injuries are faced with daily obstacles in the work place since the injuries are hidden. Employers will not understand why these workers are unable to carry out some work. In this case, a person who once had brain injury faces uphill task in getting employment, this si because many employers gauge employees to-be by checking on their disabilities alone and not abilities thus leaving the brain injury victims at the mercy of the workers.
Scott Legendre, who had survived a missile wound which caused him injury the brain, has had to deal with lots of discrimination at his work place. He worked for the federal government for almost a decade but has only managed a promotion of one grade level; this is because his employer has doubts on his abilities to meet work deadlines and what is demanded of him. This is so disheartening considering that in the recent years, there have been increasing cases of brain injuries but the employers are still adamant to those who have suffered these injuries and still have the abilities to carry out work to expectations of the employer.
Karen Lindley underwent discrimination when he opened up to the new management and said that she had some inabilities like short-term memories. Under the new management, she worked for sometime before her boss started jamming her with a lot of information that she could not manage. The manager chose not to understand her at all. She was demoted to being administrative assistant. Many people with brain injuries do not look from the outside disabled thus employers do not understand; they think these people and lying and do not want to work.
48.9 million people in the United States have disabilities, according to the statistics by America Association of Disabled Persons. They however have employment rate of just 27.6 percent despite being 19.4 percent of the population in America. Average earning per month for those people with disabilities is $1,562 while those who are normal and with no disabilities and aged between 35 years to 54 years earn on monthly average $2,446. This is despite the fact that the former just have mild disabilities.
In 1972, a labor code 132a was endorsed that forbid prejudice against employees who had suffered brain injuries in the United States. Employers though have not lived up to this law in spite of the stern measures that would be taken against them if they did not follow this rule. The employer found not complying with this rule may be required to refund legal expenses to the employee if he (the employee) goes to court and wins the suit.
But one reality is on the ground, more needs to be done to protect these survivors f brain injuries to help them not lose their jobs and also to encounter favoritism against them in the work place. Many employers are reluctant to hire them because to them, it means low productivity while those already working are vulnerable to demotions from their jobs despite justifiable ability to continue working. They are bound to fail if they will not get any assistance therefore we all need to help them by awareness creation about this issue so that they can once and for all be recognized and respected at their work places. This way, the discrimination will have been weeded out.