Current and Future Directions in Workplace Accommodation Research. Karen Milchus, MS B.M.E. Maureen Linden, MS B.M.E. Scott Haynes, MS B.M.E.

Transcription

1 Current and Future Directions in Workplace Accommodation Research Karen Milchus, MS B.M.E. Maureen Linden, MS B.M.E. Scott Haynes, MS B.M.E.

2 Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Workplace Accommodations (Work RERC) Identifies, develops and promotes new technologies that maximize independence and participation of people with disabilities, including aging workers, in the workplace

3 Characteristics of Past Workplace Accommodation Research Practice Based Evidence (case studies) Few describe trends by people within / across user groups Few describe outcomes

4 Presentation Overview Accommodation Use and Unmet Needs Telework Emerging Technologies

5 ACCOMMODATION USE AND UNMET NEEDS

6 Purpose What is being used (AT, strategy, etc.)? Who uses it (functional limitation)? Why is it needed (work environment)? How does it impact the user? Importance Frequency of use Satisfaction What unmet needs remain?

7 Main Survey Administered electronically (phone option) Inclusion criteria: At least one functional limitation Currently employed or working as a volunteer Survey response Partial responses = 459 Completed responses = 440 Completed and met inclusion criteria = 373

8 Abilities and Accommodations Abilities based on ICF activity descriptors Vision example: I am unable to see details such as newspaper print, but I can see obstacles in my path. Accommodation types Universal Features Accommodations Help or Assistance Assistive Technology

9 Participation

10 Participant Descriptors Demographics Gender: 63.5% Female Age: 40.3% > 55 years Education: 71.9% comp. 4-yr college or higher Employment Level Full time: 61.4% Part time: 21.2% Multiple: 17.4% Employment Location Usual Worksite: 63.0% Split: 16.6% Various loc.: 10.7% Home: 9.4% Employment Type Employee: 78.6% Self-Emp.: 14.3% Volunteer: 7.1%

11 Employment by EEOC Category service workers 22% managers 17% laborers, skilled & unskilled 2% clerical 12% sales 3% professionals 39% technicians 5%

12 % of respondents Functional Limitations 100% 80% 60% 56% 40% 20% 28% 19% 27% 11% 21% 0% Mobility Limitations Upper Extremity Hearing Vision Speech Mental Function

13 Accommodations

14 Number of Selected Accommodations by Type # Accommodations by Type Universal Feature Accommodation Help or Assistance Assistive Technology Mobility (n=210) Upper Ext. (n-104) Hearing (n=71) Vision (n=101) Speech (n=42) Mental (n=80)

15 Percent of Selected Accommodations by Type % Accommodations by Type 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% Universal Feature Accommodation Help or Assistance Assistive Technology 10% 0% Mobility (n=210) Upper Ext. (n-104) Hearing (n=71) Vision (n=101) Speech (n=42) Mental (n=80)

16 Accommodation Use Described by Vision Group

17 Accommodation Use Described by Hearing Group

18 Impact Functional Limitation Importance Frequency Satisfaction Mobility Upper Extremity Hearing Visions Speech Mental Function Based on a Likert scale; max=3

19 Unmet Needs

20 Response to Question on Unmet Needs 50% 45% 40% 30% 31% 28% 34% 33% 20% 17% 10% 0% MOBILITY UPPER EXTREMITY HEARING VISION SPEECH MENTAL FUNCTION

21 Comments: % by Function Functional Limitation Access to Built Env. Work Space Equip. Materials AT Policy Mgmt. Helper Trans. Support Mobility Upper Extremity Hearing Vision Speech Mental Function TOTAL

22 Unmet Needs 2 nd most common for Mobility and UE was Access to Built Environment: Doors too heavy, no elevator Bathroom not accessible Mental Function: 34% Policy or Mgmt. Need clearer direction More flexibility in project timing Manager refuses request for accommodation

23 Unmet Needs Vision: 55% commented on equipment, materials, or AT Print materials not accessible Screen reader not compatible with software Hearing: Multi-speaker or noisy environments Lack of co-worker support

24 Follow-Up Surveys

25 Hearing: Multi-Speaker Settings Purpose: Gauge effectiveness of accommodations in multi-speaker settings Variety of meeting types Expressive and Receptive communication Strategies: aural/oral, text, visual Specific hearing function categories n=161

26 Hearing: Key Points Expressive comm. most effective strategies also most frequently used Receptive comm. most frequently used not always most effective (e.g. speech reading) Text-based strategies effective but not frequently used in smaller meetings Emphasizes need for UD and increased awareness in the workplace

27 Vision: Accessing Information Purpose: Gauge effectiveness of accommodations for accessing information on the job Digital vs. Printed materials Variety of techniques Specific vision function categories N=82

28 Vision: Key Points Screen readers most commonly used to access digital text (83%) Sighted assistants used to access digital (15%) and printed (30%) material 50%-60% use Braille About 10% found common technologies to be ineffective

29 Summary Important to identify specific abilities within functional limitation groups Need to increase awareness among employers and co-workers Continue to improve access to environments through UD in the built environment, policies, and access to assistive technology

30 TELEWORK

31 Telework Definition.. the practice of substituting communication and/or computer technology for actual travel to work or a central office. Estimated number of employees working from home: 7.6 million in million in 2006

32 Telework Definition Work only from home. Work from home as an extension of traditional work Self Employed Flexible workplaces Co-working Work conducted while traveling

33

34 Accommodating Benefits Removes Architectural Barriers Reduces Fatigue and Pain-Related Barriers Allows Access to Personal Services

35 Questions Where do people work? Who teleworks? Do teleworkers with disabilities use different accommodations? Are employees with disabilities satisfied with telework?

36 Survey: Employment Characteristics Employment Location One site Not home Home Split: One site and Home Different locations daily Nature of Employment Employee Self-employed / Contract Volunteer

37 Categorization of Respondents Commuter Self- Employed at Home Full-time Teleworker Occasional Teleworker Nomad Works from the same place (not home) every day, regardless of the nature of employment. Self-employed and always works from home. Always works from home while being employed by or volunteering for a company Splits time between home and another single work location, regardless of the nature of employment. Work location changes daily, regardless of the nature of employment.

38 Distribution of Worker Types Full-time Teleworker 2% Ocassional Teleworker 17% Nomads 11% Commuter 64% Home 6%

39 General Characteristics Worker Type # of Limitations # of Accommodations Full-Time Teleworker Occasional Teleworker Commuter 1.5* 7.8 Home Nomad Total Sample (n=373) * Statistically less than the other worker types (p <0.05) Statistically more than the other worker types (p < 0.01)

40 Who Teleworks? Functional Limitation % of Teleworkers Mobility 88% Upper Extremity 44% Hearing 35% Vision 33% Speech 21% Mental Function 21% Managers & Professionals were twice as likely to telework as those in other EEOC categories (p< 0.05)

41 Telework as an Accommodation Less than half (47%) of the teleworkers reported telework as an accommodation Telework is non-disability related Accommodations represent CHANGE Concomitant Pain & Fatigue 57% reported satisfaction with telework 76% rated telework as important.

42 Comparisons across Worker Groups Flexible Scheduling (p<0.001) Group Accommodation % use Architectural Features & Transportation Supports Telecommunication Accommodation Architectural Features 59% Transportation Supports 10% Computer Input 19% Computer Output 18% Job Restructuring Accommodations Telephone Aids 12% Job Task Reassignment 17% Alternate Training & Supervision 13% Performance Measure Changes 9%

43 Comparisons Across Teleworkers Those who reported telework as an accommodation were. 3 times more likely to use flexible scheduling * 7 times more likely to use customized workstations 6 times more likely to use computer input devices 20 times less likely to use telephone aids.. than those who didn t view telework as an accommodation * p <0.05 p < 0.01

44 Conclusions Primary benefits of telework are to alleviate pain and fatigue. Teleworkers do not use more accommodations or seem to require additional infrastructure. Telework may present other barriers Future work should focus on telework benefits.

45 EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES

46 State of the Science Conference What is the current state and future directions of workplace accommodations? Held April 2011 in Washington, DC Mix of researchers, practitioners, policy makers, product developers, and employees with disabilities o 65 participants; 20 different states o NIDRR projects: 7 RRTCs, 3 RERCs, 4 ADA info centers o Gov t. agencies: NIDRR, Access Board, EAC, ODEP, SSA o Employment organizations: JAN, NIB, NISH, VR in 2 states o Plus: RESNA, MD AT Act project, and others.

47 State of the Science Conference Theme: The potential of emerging technologies to increase the participation of employees with disabilities in the workplace Format: Presentation on an emerging technology Breakout groups discussed: How might the technology be used as an accommodation to solve a problem faced by people with disabilities in the workplace? What are the barriers to development or implementation of this accommodation?

48 State of the Science Conference Theme: The potential of emerging technologies to increase the participation of employees with disabilities in the workplace Technology Areas: Robotics Social / Collaborative Tools Gaming / Virtual Worlds Augmented Reality

49 Emerging Technology: Robotics Healthcare Assistance Retrieving / delivering items, opening doors, cleansing skin Research underway on improved robot mechanics & robotic perception

50 Potential Accommodations: Robotics Can replace personal care attendants or service animals Assist with feeding, toileting, pressure relief, etc. Retrieve and deliver objects, open doors, and provide mobility and propulsion assistance Can assist with material handling Perform initial set-up for daily activities (e.g., material positioning, donning headset) Gathering items from warehouse, reshelving, etc. But Fear of robots (e.g., replace workers, safety) Control system must be made accessible Support services needed to customize programming Robotic technologies are expensive

51 Emerging Technology: Robotics Telepresence Robotics Interactive two-way audio / video communication on a mobile base Co-located with the person; controlled by someone providing remote services or assistance Located remotely; provides an opportunity to engage with the outside world Several systems starting to come on the market

52 Potential Accommodations: Robotics Telepresence robots provide opportunities for telework Can access inaccessible areas of a workplace Remote job coaching - monitor; provide verbal/video cues Monitor multiple people in multiple locations Remote job training Train employee in setting where task is performed But Use depends on company acceptance / corporate culture Cost / benefit not yet established Operators need training / accessible, easy-to-use controls Cannot manipulate objects in the environment Can only travel on one level since has a wheeled base Network coverage / dead spots

53 Emerging Tech: Social / Collaborative Tools Collaboration software is invaluable to teams that are distributed across geographies and work groups/divisions Social media / web-based communities (e.g., Facebook, Twitter) can enhance work-related social interaction, social inclusion and networking, especially for teleworkers Example: IBM uses Lotus Connections, an accessible platform with online communities, blogs, wikis, file-sharing, etc. All employees use these tools -- may not be apparent that one or more coworkers have a disability Designed for accessibility / immediate use

54 Potential Accommodations: Social / Collaborative Tools Other potential applications: Scheduling or appointment-prompting aids Use Like buttons to share work-related resources Platform for people to share accommodation information Communication support Example: Tweet info. that needs to be acted upon immediately (e.g., emergencies) But. Need universally design tools; accessibility guidelines have not kept up with these new platforms Many employers currently ban the use of social media in their workplace due to concerns about productivity Privacy / security aspects of sharing information May appeal to younger workers more than to older co-workers (or supervisors)

55 Emerging Technology: Gaming Platforms / Virtual Worlds Gaming platforms used for training Engaging way to practice repetitive exercises or skills Effective for training larger groups of individuals Virtual worlds: online simulated environment, in which users can interact, and use and create objects (e.g., Second Life) Already offer education, commerce, social engagement Interactive storytelling user roleplays in virtual world as a means to rehearse and learn social skills

56 Potential Accommodations: Gaming Platforms / Virtual Worlds Training for employees (e.g., practice job interviews, repetitive tasks, how to react when something unexpected happens, interactions with coworkers) All in a safe environment Training for employers (e.g., how to interact with people with disabilities, possibly in the role of the employee) Prompting system: Sensors in the environment could detect situations and pull up scenarios to try out safely before responding for real Offer collaborative spaces / virtual meetings for telework Users decide how to represent themselves But

57 Barriers to Potential Accommodations: Gaming Platforms / Virtual Worlds But Employers resistance -- don t like gaming at work Need to ensure that the training or rehabilitation goal of the game is achieved while finding the fun Will the employee be able to transfer the skills from the training environment to the real world? Personalized training needed; who will provide this customization? Development and operational resources: multidisciplinary team of experts, cost, processing power Accessibility (inc. literacy) issues may exist

58 Emerging Technology: Augmented Reality Involves superimposing content onto a scene that is either in physical space or in a computer generated (georeferenced) image Apps increasing with addition of GPS and orientation sensors on mobile devices Content projected onto another surface, presented on lens/glasses, or combined with video/computergenerated images Location descriptions, panoramic images + phone orientation sensors used to supplement GPS

59 Potential Accommodations: Augmented Reality Use as a navigation tool Provide coaching for specific tasks Job training move from virtual reality training, through augmented reality, and onto actual work tasks Allows people to train in safe environments But Where does the augmentation data come from? Most existing data is for outdoor environments Development tools must be user-friendly and accessible if it is to be easily customizable by non-programmers Strategies for providing effective coaching/training via this technology needs to be developed Additional info / sensors may be needed to help people determine how to use the information Is it accessible?

60 Summary & Overarching Themes: Accommodations Training tool for employees (e.g., practice job) Training tool for employers Platform for job coaching (onsite or remote) Delivery of cognitive prompts Support for communication (e.g., among employees with disabilities) Support for people teleworking as an accommodation Help with personal care and/or material handling

61 Overarching Themes: Barriers Accessibility Acceptance by employers Need for services to support these technologies (e.g., customization) Need for training on how to use the technologies

62 For More Information About the State of the Science Conference Visit the conference webpage - An article discussing the findings will be appearing in a future special issue of Disability & Technology: Assistive Technology

63 Questions??

64 Thank you!! This publication of the RERC on Workplace Accommodations is supported by Grant H133E of the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research of the U.S. Department of Education

65 CEU Questions 1. Research has found that employees with a functional limitation related to often have unmet accommodation needs related to. 2. Employees who telework are more likely to use as an accommodation. 3. Although not yet widely used in this manner, is an emerging technology that shows promise for assisting employees with disabilities by being used to.

66 Accommodation Use Described by Mental Function Group RESNA International

67 Impact of Accommodation Importance Unnecessary Job possible without Job difficult without Job impossible without Satisfaction Extremely unsatisfied Unsatisfied Satisfied Extremely satisfied Frequency Rarely use Frequently use Always use

68 Background Existing multi-subject literature: Limited information about specific barriers and facilitators [1] Limited information regarding impact of accommodation from user s perspective [2] [1] Butterfield, T. and Ramseur, H., (2004) Research and case study findings in the area of workplace accommodations including provisions for assistive technology: A literature review. Technology and Disability, 16(4) p [2] Gamble, M.J., et al., (2006). Assistive technology: Choosing the right tool for the right job. Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 24(2), p