4 Ways Companies Win by Hiring Adults with Autism
Ian, a recycling tech at Blue Star Recyclers, has his own way of dealing with stress.
He spins for a few minutes to calm himself down. And then he gets back to work.
Blue Star chief executive officer Bill Morris has a pretty good idea how some employers might respond to a spinning Ian or to any other worker with developmental disabilities.
“Young adults with development disabilities sometimes can look different or act different, and it's easy for employers to focus on that,” he says.
What they'd miss, Morris says, are “enormous talents” that make Ian and other developmentally disabled young people remarkable, and remarkably productive, workers.
Here are 4 ways employers can win when they look past the differences and hire a developmentally disabled young adult:
1. They're model employees.
Morris confesses that when he started at Blue Star, he underestimated his new employees. “I didn't know how good they were,” he says. “I was blown away.”
An independent study of Blue Star employees with autism spectrum and other disorders found that they have a 97 percent task engagement rate,take pride in their jobs, have high rates of attendance, look forward to going to work and receive fair wages when considering their disabilities.
2. Positive, consistent results to the bottom line.
Blue Star employs 38 adults with developmental disabilities. Since its start in 2009, the company has ethically recycled more than 7 million pounds of e-waste and saved taxpayers money by providing employment for a population typically reliant on government assistance.
And Blue Star's workforce has turned in a performance that would be the envy of any company. In six years there has been zero absenteeism, zero on-the-job accidents and zero turnover. In the world of e-recycling, these employees out-perform their non-disabled peers.
“These statistics are unheard-of in a production workforce,” Morris says. “Our workers are super-productive and super-safe.”...
Get the full scoop at KOAA 5 News.
http://www.koaa.com/story/29443572/4-ways-companies-win-by-hiring-adults-with-autism
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