Finding A Good Job Fit For You

Engaging work is work that draws you in, holds your attention and gives you a state of flow. Regardless of your background and what path you choose to take, feeling satisfied and fulfilled by what you do can give you the energy and motivation to continue on your career path.

Have you thought about what other ingredients a good job fit for you would involve? Research has suggested that the best job matches for autistic adults in employment are jobs with structure, routine and that align well with personal interests. Clear job responsibilities, predictable expectations and ongoing mentoring are all factors that create good conditions for employment success.

Identifying your knowledge, interests and abilities can help to open up great and enjoyable employment opportunities. A career guidance process could be a good support to you if you need help in identifying these. The recently established Autism Resource Hub can help you to search for a career guidance service or any other professional support that might help you learn how to thrive in the workplace.

Focus on your interests and how to become even better at what you love to do. Formal qualifications will give you the edge to stand out from competitors but any books, online education and even social media can help you to link up with careers and people that align well with your interests.

Targeted Strategies to Help with Accessing Employment

Targeted strategies get you access to employers in ways other than direct job applications. Targeted strategies can include training, mentors, people you know in the industry, agency work or voluntary experience.

In 2023 DCU Institute of Education conducted research that made it clear that transitional programmes can help autistic people move into the world of work more successfully.

There may be specialised supports for jobseeking and recruitment practices that are open to you, and if so why not use them.

Specialisterne is a specialist consultancy agency for neurodivergent jobseekers in Ireland ,

AsIAm provide employment guidance and a list of inclusive workplaces

AHEAD offer the WAM Work Placement programme and the Get AHEAD network programme for graduates with disabilities.

Any of these could be very helpful supports to you in accessing employment.

There may also be other opportunities you are overlooking:

If you are in college there may be mentoring or graduate programmes available to you that can help you to gain experience and references.

If you are unemployed you may find support through INTREO, EmployAbility or the Local Area Employment Service.

APPROACH YOUR JOB SEARCH WTIH A PLAN that includes self care!

Autistic Rights in Accessing Employment

In AsIAm’s 2023 report on Autism in the Workplace, 80% of autistic people said they would be likely to disclose their autism diagnosis if they were sure the employer or client would be supportive, however, the same percentage did not feel confident that employers, managers, colleagues, and clients know enough about autism to support them. Clearly there is work to be done in educating employers about autistic rights in the workplace and in accessing employment.

The draft Autism Innovation Strategy (AIS) is a cross government initiative that aims to address the challenges and barriers facing autistic people and to improve understanding and accommodation of autism within society and across the public system. While this is a draft policy and has only just been through a public consultation period, hopefully a final AIS strategy will soon be published and include recommended actions across government departments.

Any suggested actions listed below were quoted in the draft format of the AIS before it went to public consultation. These have not yet been finalised but give an idea of the barriers facing autistic people in accessing employment.

Intreo Centres provide employment and income supports and services and one goal of the draft AIS strategy is that a sensory room will be available in each Intreo office by the end of the first quarter of 2025. It may be worth enquiring if your local Intreo Centre is planning to develop a sensory room or calm zone in line with this strategy. The draft AIS has recommended that all Intreo staff receive disability awareness education.

The Public Appointments Service (PAS) provides a range of reasonable accommodations for candidates with a disability as part of the recruitment and selection process. The PAS is supporting the delivery of more inclusive routes into the civil and public service. Efforts are also under way to increase diversity within the PAS interview board member pool and ensure that all interview board members undergo disability awareness and unconscious bias training.

The recommendations for the PAS are to continue to enhance its recruitment and selection processes by taking a universal design approach and gathering equality monitoring data to track its commitment to increase by 20% the number of candidates with a declared disability, including autism, and who are from an ethnically diverse background applying for roles.

Local Area Enterprise Offices were recommended under the draft AIS strategy to better support entrepreneurship opportunities by adapting their training and mentoring programmes so as to better support the needs of autistic individuals using their services, alongside other under-represented groups, in line with best practice.

To support remote working and entrepreneurial opportunities for autistic people, the AIS Strategy also recommends encouraging the development of autism-friendly workspaces within the Connected Hubs network, which offers a network of remote working spaces and office facilities across Ireland. The goal of this action would be to enable autistic people and people with disabilities to work remotely at a venue that caters for their needs.

The National Disability Authority has been recommended under the draft AIS strategy to review existing resources relating to autism-friendly workplaces and identify gaps in information and/or the need for updating information, including guidance on accommodating people with sensory issues in shared office including open-plan offices. The goal of this action would be to enable employers to better support autistic employees in the workplace.

The Importance of Well-Being when Jobseeking

Jobseeking is a stage in life where all people feel their autonomy is threatened. For autistic people, who frequently spend most of their time already needing to advocate for themselves to simply have the same opportunities as everyone else, jobseeking can be exceptionally challenging. Consider any and all supports you may need to access employment, prioritise your stability and help you to restore some kind of equilibrium in response to the stresses of this time.

Learn what you need to do well to keep well-regulated during the jobseeking process and try to implement these habits now. Ultimately these habits will serve you well when you get the job.

Resources Listed Here

AHEAD | Get AHEAD Network

AHEAD | WAM Programme

AsIAm | Employers and Jobseekers

Autism Resource Hub | Clinician Search

Jobseeking Support Services | CareersPortal

Specialisterne | Building Inclusive Workplaces

Sources

As I Am | Ireland's Autism Charity | Resource Library

AsIAm Ireland’s Autism Charity: Frequently Asked Questions | AsIAm

Autism in the Workplace Report 2021 | AsIAm and IrishJobs.ie

Draft Autism Innovation Strategy 2024 | Gov.ie