Don’t employ disabled people out of sympathy, says HR expert who promotes inclusive hiring

SINGAPORE: Employers who want to hire disabled people should not do so out of empathy or sympathy, said Ms Ho Geok Choo, CEO of human resources and training firm Human Capital Singapore.
“We want (firms) to be able to recognise these people for who they are and what they could contribute,” said Ms Ho, who champions inclusive hiring.
She noted that local firms need a lot of encouragement and possibly more exposure to people with disabilities to hire them. At the same time, “it takes two parties to tango”, she told CNA’s Deep Dive podcast.
She also pointed out that when given employment opportunities, people with disabilities should deliver on time and produce quality work.
“As much as employers would like to give them a chance, PWDs (persons with disabilities) would have to really try and sell themselves because they believe in their own capability,” she added.
Ms Ho’s firm launched a programme called HR Power Bank in 2021 which supports the employment of persons with disabilities.
Her comments came as the government announced new recommendations under the Enabling Masterplan 2030, a national roadmap for the government and community to work together to support people with disabilities.
These include funding support for employers to implement inclusive hiring practices and gig jobs to help people with disabilities return to the workforce.
Even as the government pumps in more resources to help people with disabilities, multiple amputee DG Carole Ann believes she has to be her own advocate.
She said it is natural for others to doubt her abilities.
“Everybody assumes that I will not be working as hard as my colleague. My personal thought is: Get in first and try,” said Ms Carole, who also appeared in CNA’s podcast.
“They (firms) want to help you – it’s just they don’t know how, so we need to facilitate. We need to be the advocate of our strengths,” she added. 
The 47-year-old had her limbs amputated in 2019 after they became gangrenous. This was after a cyst had ruptured in one of her ovaries. 
She now works as a service quality specialist at IT firm Surflink Technology Resources, who was her employer when she was able-bodied.
A boss she had worked with previously hired her, telling her he would evaluate her work over a year and that she could adapt at her own pace. 
She was allowed to work from home. With help from SG Enable, the focal agency for disability in Singapore, she was linked up with tech and engineering non-profit Engineering Good, which modified equipment that she needed to use. 
One example is a computer mouse, which she uses in front of her device rather than the typical right-hand side.
A few months in, her boss complimented her on her improvement.
“I didn’t expect it to be so good, and then slowly, before you know it, I’m independent already,” she said. 
After getting steadily better at her job, Ms Carole is now eyeing a leadership role.
“What I really, really wish is that I can be in a leadership position and show the world that even though I have no limbs and no fingers, that I can manage a team,” she said.
Under its HR Power Bank programme, Human Capital Singapore acts as a “surrogate employer”, said Ms Ho. 
The firm trains people with disabilities in HR roles such as payment, recruitment and scholarship administration. After being trained, they get work experience with her company.
The trained employees are then deployed to small and medium-sized enterprises.
 
“We manage the apprehensions of employers who are thinking of bringing in persons with disabilities because they have the comfort of knowing that ‘HR Power Bank has already done the difficult job for us’,” said Ms Ho.
She added that the programme could be scaled up.
Ms Carole said such an initiative would help people with disabilities when they go out into the working world as they can learn social skills. 
She had advice for her fellow disabled people: “Don’t be afraid to ask (for opportunities) and put yourself out there.”