Working Life of a VI

I love my job and I have been lucky enough to find work whenever I have wanted it.  When I left University I found a job a short walk from my house.  When I was made redundant I was only out of work for 3 days before starting a new job.  When the opportunity to start my current job came along it was great timing and it works well around my family life.  

However my experience is the exception.  On the RNIB (Royal National Institute for the Blind) web site it states that in the UK two thirds of people of working age who are registered blind or partially sighted are unemployed.  In comparison over 2/3 of Deaf people are in employment.  The overall national average being approximately 5% of people being unemployed. 

So I ask myself why is this?  Are we more stupid then the average person?  Do we like being unemployed?  Or is it that the right jobs are a lot harder to come by?  

With modern technology it is possible, with the right training, for blind and partially sighted people to do many jobs.  Of course there are restrictions particularly with the fact that we can't drive that do have an affect on the kind of work we can do but then not all sighted people drive.  

I know this may be controversial but I do think that just as in every other sector of society there are some VI people who are more then happy to be on benefits and do pretty well out of the "system" I am not saying this is everyone by any means but there are a percentage who probably could work but choose not to.  

I think there is an uncertainty in employers as to whether a VI person will be able to do a job as well as a fully sighted person.  I remember the senior Solicitor at the first firm I worked in was I think a bit unsure about me being employed and indeed when my Guide Dog owning sister began work in the same firm a couple of years later.  However I feel that although there are some things that we are by necessity slower at doing there are other areas in which we can excel.  

I still say that the most useful skill I learned at Secondary School was touch typing and I have certainly made a lot of use of it.  However personally I think the biggest thing that has helped me in my working life is the determination to prove to myself that I can do my job well.  It is more then just wanting to prove to my employer that I was the right choice for the job, although that is certainly part of it, it's a need to know deep inside that I have worked my hardest to do what is asked of me.  In this respect I think I am much harder on myself then any employer might me.  I talked to my sister about this recently and she felt the same that we are far more critical of our own abilities then our employers ever have been.    I may not be the fastest in all areas of my work but God gave me a brain and I try to use it as best I can.  

I would therefore say to anyone who was interviewing a blind or partially sighted person for a job to seriously consider them.  There are grants that help with equipment to access the computer if it is necessary and you may be missing out on a dedicated worker.  

My current part time job will be finishing at some point this year as the office is moving away from the area where I live.  I do not know what will happen then will I be able to find another suitable job, do more voluntary work or maybe take a break for a while I really do not know.   I do trust though that God has a plan for me and he is no where near finished with me yet.