L'inclusione scolastica e lavorativa nella prospettiva della teoria trasformativa. Strumenti e pratiche per il disability management

Il contributo esplora le pratiche di disability management e le metodologie a supporto dell'inclusione lavorativa di persone in condizione di disabilità, a partire da una ricerca collaborativa triennale che ha visto la partecipazione di un team di ricercatori/rici universitari e un network interistituzionale composto da aziende, cooperative del settore educativo, centri per l'impiego, Ufficio Scolastico Regionale, scuole secondarie e associazioni di familiari di persone con sindromi dello spettro autistico. Nello specifico, si articolano il percorso metodologico e i risultati emergenti della ricerca, che ha intercettato pratiche formative e dispositivi organizzativi in grado di sostenere processi di inserimento (e reinserimento) lavorativo di persone adulte in condizione di disabilità, quali le metodologie del Disability Tool e della Consulenza Collaborativa Organizzativa. Nel paragrafo conclusivo si discutono le implicazioni dei risultati per l'inclusione scolastica e le azioni a sostegno dello sviluppo della professionalità docente

Disability management in a public-private health care facility in South Africa: an organisational perspective

Background: Job retention, long-term absenteeism and medical boarding pay-outs are significant concerns for employers with- in the public health care sector of South Africa. Objective: To describe disability management policies, procedures and programmes of employees following impairment and disability in a public-private healthcare facility in South Africa. Methods: An exploratory qualitative study design was used with key informants in senior management and nursing managers (n=12) selected via purposive sampling. Audio-recorded data from semi-structured interviews and a focus group were themati- cally analysed using inductive reasoning. Results: There is poor adherence to occupational health and disability management policies and the current referral process is informal with managers using discretion to manage employees with ill health and acquired disability. The procedures prescribed in the policy and procedure on incapacity and ill-health-retirement need to be followed, and an early return to work programme within the health care facility needs to be implemented. Conclusions: Despite South Africa having many policies on recruitment and reasonable accommodations, there is a lack of implementation of these policies. An integrated disability management policy and programme encompassing health prevention, early return to work strategies, vocational rehabilitation and the implementation of reasonable accommodation is required to ensure that employees who have acquired disabilities or ill health are successful in the workplace. Keywords: Disability management; vocational assessments; return to work.

Construction disability management maturity model: case study within the Manitoban construction industry

PurposeA review of the literature revealed a lack of coherent frameworks for implementing disability management, particularly within the construction industry. This study involved developing the construction disability management maturity model (CDM3) to assess the maturity of disability management (DM) practices in construction organisations.Design/methodology/approachIn its current form, the model assessed twelve indicators using a series of questions representing relevant best practices for each indicator and five different maturity levels. An analytical hierarchical process was conducted using eight construction and DM experts to determine the weights of importance of these different indicators. The model was then applied to evaluate ten construction companies in Manitoba, Canada.FindingsThe results revealed that the indicators of “Return to Work”, “Disability and Injury Prevention”, and “Senior Management Support” practises were the most heavily weighted and, thus, the most important. Companies' DM performance was observed, on average, to be at the quantitatively managed level. “Senior Management Support” and “Disability Injury Prevention” practices were observed to be the most mature indicators on average, revealing a potential relationship between the most important and most mature indicators.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample size of companies evaluated is a key limitation in that it does not permit for the generalisation of the results.Practical implicationsThis study provided a framework for benchmarking the DM performance of construction organisations.Originality/valueNo similar maturity model has been developed to date to assess DM in construction, making the CDM3 the first of its kind to evaluate a construction organisation's existing DM practices against best practises.

Getting the Message Right: Evidence-Based Insights to Improve Organizational Return-to-Work Communication Practices

Purpose There is an absence of evidence-based guidance to support workplace stakeholders in the effective delivery of return-to-work (RTW) messages. Our study examines the specific RTW communication practices and their impact on the management of work disability. Methods Within two large and complex healthcare organizations, semi-structured interviews were conducted with workplace stakeholders (e.g., supervisors, union representatives, disability management professionals and workers’ compensation representatives) and workers who had previously experienced sickness absence related to an occupational injury or illness. For workplace stakeholders interview questions asked about their roles and responsibilities in the RTW process, and specific communication strategies and messages that were used at different phases of the RTW process. For worker participants, interview questions explored RTW experiences and the impact of communication on work re-integration. An interpretative descriptive approach was used to inductively examine themes from interviews to create ways of understanding phenomena that yielded applied findings. Results Forty participants were interviewed including workplace stakeholders and workers. Participants frequently described effective RTW communication as messages that were delivered by a workplace stakeholder that included the content required by an injured worker to navigate the organizational disability management process and utilized specific strategies to address the perceived attitudes and perceptions held by an injured worker regarding work re-integration. Workplace stakeholders described five specific communication strategies including relaying messages of support, optimizing the timing of communication, careful word choice, framing messages, and tailoring communication to the injured worker. Conclusion RTW communication is an active process that requires a strategic approach. Effective communication practices represent an important strategy for workplace stakeholders to address the barriers held by injured workers and foster early and sustained RTW.