I was on the panel for the United Nations observance of World Autism Day. Held on Apr 8 as Apr 2 coincided with Good Fricay. It is extra special to be on a UN Panel as my late grandpa used to work for the United Nations. This year the event focused on the right to employment with theme “Inclusion in the Workplace: Challenges and Opportunities in a Post-Pandemic World.”
When: April 8, 10-11am EST
Topic: Inclusion in the Workplace: Challenges and Opportunities in a Post-Pandemic World
Recording of Event at: https://youtu.be/diZhgcTBPgk
My responses from the event
CV: Hari, How has the pandemic affected you?
Hello world. My late grandpa was a UN executive, so it's really extra special to be on this U N Panel today.
The pandemic has presented both challenges and opportunities for many autistics like me.
Many autistics have a hard time with uncertainty and the pandemic has been like the ultimate uncertainty. There is also the disorientation due to the sense of a loss of time with each day of zoom meetings looking exactly the same.
Worldwide there has been a surge in mental health issues; the anxiety is compounded in autistics and often manifests as upticks in obsessive and repetitive behaviors, meltdowns, sleep disturbances etc.
On the flip side, while I miss the buzzing energy and life of campus, it's actually been a fantastic year for me, and I'm involved in so many projects and conferences now. For instance I just got selected as a Haas Scholar at UC Berkeley where I will be doing a year long research on autism.
Remote learning via zoom, has been ironically equalizing. In a large lecture class, everyone is on mute, even students who can talk. Control of the camera puts me in charge of the amount of atypical body mannerisms that others get to notice.
Remote work also reduces a lot of the anxieties around the constant societal need for physical social interactions, eye contact, and trying not to draw attention to my atypical mannerisms; all of which takes up extra mental effort and energy. So I’m actually able to get a lot more done now.
I also love that we are now able to seamlessly interact with people from around the world without the anxiety of travel. I did not think I would get to hear perspectives from Africa or Ireland like today for instance.
In the post pandemic world. I would love to see hybrid solutions for autistics so we get the advantages of both the remote and physical environments.
CV: Hari, Do you feel the pandemic has exposed discrimination against autistic individuals?
The pandemic exposed systemic flaws in societal attitudes. One is the lip service that was paid to accessibility in the pre pandemic world. For years the disability community has been asking for remote work or hybrid solutions as many faced access barriers in education and the workplace. We were told remote work was impossible. Yet it suddenly became possible overnight when there was a will for it. We can only hope that such benefits will continue in the post pandemic world with the virtual workplace the norm for many companies.
But we need to watch for a couple of issues. Who will decide who gets to work remotely and who does not?. Will the disabled community continue to be less protected?. And also that remote work will not result in greater isolation for the disabled community.
Some of us autistics benefited from zoom education but what has been troubling is that while regular education was able to transition to remote learning, hands on special education services abruptly stopped. Remote education or tele therapy did not work for many who need that physical one on one support and have other needs.
The disproportionate access to services meant that many autistics faced regression in skills that take time to build up like building independence in the community.
Adult autistics living in group residential settings were at higher risk for the spread of covid as well as medical rationing.
This is just a small list actually.
CV: And Hari, How do you think virtual job interviews during a pandemic affects autistic jobseekers??
Interviewers often form impressions of you in the first few minutes. Much as we would like to pretend otherwise, there is a certain societal expectation of the body language of a candidate. So I’m trying to gauge their mood, body language on top of worrying about my own atypical body mannerisms, eye contact and other sensory stimulation. There is a lot of mental and physical effort going into these extraneous things.
So virtual interviews could actually be a blessing in disguise. There is more control. A familiar physical space, the chair at the right height and you can position yourself and get comfortable well before the interview starts. Somehow the behavioral expectations are far less in the virtual world which means there is less mental effort. Virtual interviews are also more amenable to scripting which many autistics rely on. So I hope virtual interviews continue in the post pandemic world.
There is another thing I want to add on the topic of employment. It is disappointing that many diversity hiring initiatives by employers have only certain profiles of autistics in mind. We need to think about employment and accommodations for all autistics who want to work, irrespective of their communication levels and support needs. So that is why it's important that we start having these conversations not just in the US but around the world.
Tech rehearsal
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