Updated December 03, 2015 21:57:23 A young Queensland man with autism is on his way to his dream job as a software developer after scoring a position with a high-end technology company. More than half of working age Australians on the autism spectrum are currently unemployed. The Department of Human Services has been working with Hewlett-Packard (HP) and European social innovator company Specialisterne to help improve employment figures in the autism community. In the last 18 months, teams software testers have been recruited in Adelaide, Brisbane and most recently in Canberra. They have been selecting candidates with strong analytical and mathematical skills, who pay high attention to detail and who excel in repetitive tasks. Joel Bissmire was employed in the Brisbane team two months ago and says so far, he loves it. "To me, I believe it's easy," he said. "On a usual day, we log on to our computers and check what work has been assigned to us, see if there are any defects and best case scenario is there are no defects and then we just move on to the next one." Mr Bissmire's working life has not always been this easy; he was bullied and abused at his last job in a Brisbane fast-food restaurant. His mother Cherie Martin said she was shocked to learn he was locked in a freezer and flicked with rubber bands until he bled. "I noticed massive red welts all over his back to the point of blood being drawn where the manager had actually been flicking the big red band onto him," she said. "We were lucky that the head office dealt with it straight away and they actually relocated Joel to another restaurant; then he was with supportive staff." Since finding work with HP, Ms Martin said her son's outlook on life has improved. "He loves having an income; he's actually got money in his bank account now that he can actually spend and not worry about how he's going to live day-to-day," she said. "He's now even thinking of moving out; I don't want him to move out but to have that confidence to want to move out and start a life is amazing." Professor Cheryl Dissanayake from La Trobe University is part of the first research team in the world to track the long-term progress of such a program. She said people on the autism spectrum are often intelligent and highly skilled, but usually do not make it through job interviews because of their social skills. "As a result, they don't survive the interview process to even be able to show what their capabilities really are," she said. Professor Dissanayake said early research suggests the program is delivering positive results to both HP and their new recruits. "We're focusing on their wellbeing and their quality of life but also on the outcomes on their families; what does this mean for their families, what does this mean for their co-workers and what does this mean for their employer?" she said. HP Enterprise spokesman Michael Fieldhouse is showcasing the program to other technology companies in London this week. He said other companies need to get on board. "We're now attracting talent in a new pool, which probably hasn't been done before," he said. "In doing that, we're actually having a competitive advantage in the market place; working out the mechanisms to employ them, to award them and to sustain their employment." Topics: autism-spectrum-disorder, unemployment, australia First posted December 03, 2015 20:41:14
The Department of Human Services in Australia has been working with La Trobe University (HP) and European social innovator company Specialisterne to help improve employment figures in the autism community. Over half of working age Australians on the autism spectrum are unemployed. People on the spectrum, whilst frequently skilled and intelligent, often do not pass interviews due to their social skills. Researchers from Hewlett-Packard are part of the first team in the world to track the long-term progress of such a programme. Early research suggests that it is delivering positive results to both HP and their new recruits. HP will showcase the initiative to other technology companies in London, claiming that it offers a competitive advantage in the market place.