Laura Hayes, Job Coach

I'm an employment consultant, or "job coach", for Medallion Enterprises. I've worked there for almost a year. My job changes constantly. In between coaching, I do community-based situational assessments with clients who are just starting the VR process. Situational aessments are when we take a person with a disability out to try out some real work tasks. Community based means that we use real employers and real jobs instead of doing the assessment a separate facility.

Job coaching is a wonderful job. I really get a lot of pleasure from it. The idea of empowering individuals - taking on a job really boosts their confidence. It's really rewarding when I get out of the picture, and the individual is still able to do the job on their own. It's so rewarding to have someone I coached come back and tell me "Hey, I got promoted" or "I got a raise" or even "I still love my job". I think that's really exciting. I also like that I've gotten to know people all over town!

I think I'm pretty good at my job. I've always really liked working with people with disabilities, and I love developing friendships. I pay attention and ask the people I'm coaching about things that are important to them. I try not to just focus on the job all the time. I think I'm pretty good at building relationships both with the consumers and the employers. I think that's really important.

The Situational Assessment Process

At Medallion, each person gets six situational assessments. That is the beginning of the process, and job coaching comes in later. See, first we have an "intake meeting" with the consumer and maybe the parents or other significant people. We talk about their interests and past jobs-experience, likes, and dislikes. Based on that, I try to find sites that are as close to their interests as possible. At this point, we are not looking for a job for the person. What we're really trying to do is help them find out if they enjoy certain kinds of jobs, see what kinds of challenges they may have, that sort of thing. We try to do four-hour assessments to see about their endurance as well as their interests. There's just about a different site for every kind of interest.

When I call to set up a situational assessment, I tell the potential employer that we have a person who is interested in trying some different kinds of tasks. Then, if they are willing, I ask the employer to set aside some work, and the person and I will do it. Some sites are a lot more receptive than others. We've built such good relationships with some places that we don't even have to call in advance anymore - we can just show up. During the actual assessments, I pay close attention to how the person is learning, how quick they're picking up on things, if they appear to enjoy the work, and how they're interacting with others.

Of course, I don't always know how to do all the job tasks we are trying out, myself. Sometimes I learn it from my co-workers because we tell each other about different sites. Otherwise, the contact person is expecting us and they'll usually explain the job. If the client is not figuring it out, then I help out to make sure we get everything done. Afterwards, I usually write down everything I can remember about that day.

After we've done six assessments with a person, we set up a meeting to develop their supported employment plan. This is a plan which addresses the characteristics of the person in relationship to things that might effect their employment - for example, transportation, scheduling, and childcare. The plan looks at the person's characteristics and potential support needs or assets. The plan also considers the characteristics of the job the person has selected and the natural supports or accommodations that may be needed so the person can do the job.

The usual people at the meeting are the consumer and significant others, my supervisor, the VR counselor, the case manager (if they have one), a job developer, and myself. At my agency, I'm supposed to lead the meetings. The client and I tell the group about each of the sites- what they liked and disliked, what they were really good at and what they had trouble with.

The job developer is listening very closely to skills and interest as well as the hours the client prefers to work, and whether they want part or full-time. The also pay attention to the individual's support needs. That is, what support they would need to maintain a job in the assessed areas. That's kind of where my part ends until someone actually gets a job. Then I may start working with them as a job coach.

Building Relationships with Local Businesses

We want the employer to view us as an asset - like we're helping them out, too. Unfortunately, there are places that see us as a big burden. I think a lot of things play into that. People are busy and afraid that we're going to mess things up or make more work. They also sometimes think I'm just going to drop someone off, and they'll have to tell them what to do. And, of course there are plenty of people with a prejudice against people with disabilities. I think a lot of that comes out of lack of experience. They're uncomfortable around people with disabilities because they don't know how to interact. They think they need to do something special. I think they don't know what to do, and so it's just easier to avoid the whole thing.

But not everyone is like that. For the most part people are very understanding and welcoming. I try to deal with attitudes up front. When I make calls to possible assessment sites, I try really hard to explain what to expect, including the fact that we're not asking for a job. Some employers are afraid that if they let us do an assessment, we're going to be hasseling them from then on. When we have a bad experience, we usually leave that place alone after that, because there are so many other places that will welcome us.

Things People Commonly Misunderstand About Job Coaching

I find that people often misunderstand my job. I've had a lot of people comment because they think my job is so easy because they may see me reading a book or talking with other employees while I'm at a job site. I don't think they understand that even as I'm sitting there, I am paying attention to all kinds of little things. I'm talking with supervisors and asking "Has anything been happening?" I'm paying attention to the individual's interactions with his coworkers and customers, and I'm watching work speed and effort. I also regularly check in with the individual to see how they're feeling about their job. My interactions with co-workers are really important, too, because I'm helping to build natural supports-- it's a huge part of job coaching. It looks like I'm just socializing, but I'm really helping get that person into the social aspect of their job, too.

For example, I've gotten to know all of Tony's co-workers really well. By doing that, I've been able to point out things that they have in common with Tony. And you know, they do treat him like he's part of the team more and more every day. I can see how my job may appear very easy on the surface, but I don't think doing it well is always that easy!

Difficult Parts of My Job

Sometimes dealing with parents can be very difficult because not everyone sees eye to eye. It's really difficult when the individual tells you they want a certain type of job, but their parent doesn't agree. People do care about their kids no matter how old they are. Do this job long enough and it's inevitable that you will get chewed out on occasion.

Trying to set up assessments can be stressful because sometimes I kind of feel like a salesperson. I feel like I'm saying "Yes, it's me AGAIN." Sometimes you can feel their annoyance on the other end of the line thinking. That can be stressful. Assessments are difficult because it has to fit into so many people's schedules.

The individual's motivation can be a barrier sometimes. I worked with a girl who was constantly late to everything. That affects our schedules and the people who are expecting us to be there. Transportation can also be a huge barrier. Honestly, I prefer to do the driving to the assessment sites sometimes because then it's under my control. When the parents are picking us up, we'll sometimes have to sit around and wait if we finish early. And it's often difficult to schedule around the City's Paratransit busses - not a real punctual way to do it! Some people are their own barriers too-if they are uncooperative or leery about the whole process. And different disabilities come with different health problems, too. There have been a lot of times where we've had to cancel or reschedule because something's going on related to an individual's disability. Sometimes it seems like those around the individual who should be supporting the process don't take it very seriously. I've had parents tell me that someone couldn't make it to an assessment because he was going to a movie. You can go to a movie any time. You can't do an assessment anytime. There also seems to be barriers relating to the person's general work behavior. People often have problems showing up late or with hygiene problems.

One of the difficult parts of the job is that a lot of times the employers will come to me instead of going to the client with certain problems such as hygiene issues. They'll tell me, "Well, he needs to do this. Well, he needs to do that." I usually tell them that I'm here to help, but I always encourage them to also build that relationship with the individual. I mean I'm not going to be around forever! I also think it's more effective sometimes when it comes from the employer.

What Makes a Good Job Coach

It seems like this job either comes naturally for people, or it's just really not their thing. It's definitely important that job coaches believe that they're working with someone who's very capable of carrying a job. Knowing your boundaries is also very important. Job coaches have lost sites for people because they interfered in areas of the workplace that were not their business. Job coaches need to be friendly, have a good sense of humor, and able to pick up on the individuality of each person with whom they work. Respect is also important-not to talk down to people with developmental disabilities. Work with their strengths.

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