We do not think that the findings are representative of the views of most employers in Singapore as none of the 77 employers interviewed have even met a deaf person, let alone have any views about hiring one. There are also a number of employers who have hired and/or worked with the deaf community for which their views are not taken into account in this survey. Moreover, the sample size is small which is not a full representation of the attitudes of employers in Singapore.
2) What has SADeaf heard from members of the deaf community with regard to finding employment? Has there been a shift in feedback over the past few years?
We find that society as a whole has been more encouraging and inclusive. However, we should still recognise that there are still challenges posed to the Deaf and Hard-of-hearing, or for that matter, anyone with some form of disability, to compete with the hearing peers with similar qualifications. Therefore, it does require certain understanding from the employers to be willing to make minor adjustments to the job requirements to engage the deaf employee in alternative ways which can be easily overcome with the advent of technology such as via email, sms or Skype messaging instead of phone calls as a means of communication in the workplace.
In addition, many felt that they are able to demonstrate the same zeal and enthusiasm as the hearing if given equal opportunity to upgrade themselves through training.
3) What more do you think can be done to help perceptions change? What is currently being done?
The Deaf & Hard-of-hearing individuals have been employed in a diverse range of jobs such as admin, creative (design, media etc), accounting, engineering, IT etc. They are able to take on any job based on their education level or work experience, except those which require them to handle phone call.
Some of these successful deaf individuals include:
Deaf doctor – Dr Joseph Heng (TODAY – 1 March 2017)
Mr Teo Bee Chuan (Visual Merchandising Artist) – Mediacorp Channel 8 “Frontline” Programme – 15 July 2016
Deaf pianist Dr Azariah Tan – 16 Oct 2016, The Straits Times
Ms Lisa Loh (Accounts Administrator Assistant) & Philip Choy (Systems Administrator) – Shared via SADeaf’s Facebook
We have also recently soft piloted our job support with job matching service in January 2017. And, it’s heartening to share that through our contacts with prospective employers in the recent months, many are receptive and willing to offer equal job opportunity to our Deaf & Hard-of-hearing community. We are also collaborating with prospective employers to conduct workshops on understanding deafness and improving communication in the workplace with the deaf.
