Disabled woman secures job after Covid-19 sparks rise in working from home option

Friday, 21 January 2022

Hannah McLaren, 31, is a disabled person who has been able to secure a job thanks to the normalisation of work-from-home arrangements in the pandemic. Prior to this her mobility disability kept her out of work for many years.

A disabled woman has secured a job after three years out of work due to a rise in working from home arrangements in the Covid-19 pandemic.

Cambridge resident Hannah McLaren suffered a spinal cord injury in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, and has struggled to find employment since.

The 31-year-old says the normalisation of working from home has been a “game-changer”, and believes it could be the key to addressing unemployment in the disability community.

Hannah McLaren has secured a job after three years out of work due to the growing acceptance of work from home arrangements.

McLaren has a mobility disability and can’t get around without the assistance of a walking frame.

McLaren has had a disability since she was injured in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, and says it has made finding employment a “nightmare”.

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The Covid-19 pandemic has seen work from home become normalised, and McLaren thinks this will help tackle unemployment in the disability community.

She was injured in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake after a piece of plaster fell on her back while she was in the foodcourt at The Palms shopping mall.

The 31-year-old Cambridge woman, who is trained in mental health and addiction services, feels hopeful about her career prospects for the first time.

McLaren said trying to find work after becoming disabled was an “absolute nightmare”, despite being qualified as a mental health and addiction specialist.

“I would get through the interviewing process to the point where I would have a full-time contract in my hand,” she said.

Workbridge has helped 10 people with disabilities find work over the last month with employers now open to remote working arrangements.

“But as soon as the contract got to admin, that's where the problems started.”

She prefers working from home due to her mobility issues, but most employers she encountered were not keen on such an arrangement.

The only job she held over this time was at a disability service centre, where there was more acknowledgement of her needs.

“But then the day services were phased out, and without that one location to go to every day, I wasn't able to do it any more,” McLaren said.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, work from home arrangements have become more normalised as lockdowns were enforced to limit the spread of the virus.

McLaren said it has been a “game-changer” and was able to secure a job in December after three years of unemployment.

She now works remotely as a Covid disability adviser at the health provider, Whakarongorau.

“If it wasn't for the pandemic, I wouldn’t be back at work,” McLaren said.

Workbridge is an organisation that helps people with disabilities get into work.

National employer solutions manager David Chapman said the normalisation of working from home arrangements is helping to “even out the playing field” for disabled people.

“There are certainly a lot more opportunities for people that are working from home, and obviously if you have anxiety or mobility issues that can be really helpful for people,” he said.

'It's a good opportunity for people to challenge their own thinking in who they employ.'

Chapman said Workbridge has helped 10 people over the last month find work with employers who are now open to allowing employees to work remotely from home.

“[One of the] reasons why people don't employ disabled people is hiring managers may not know quite how to deal with it, so they move on to the next person,” he said.

“We’re working alongside companies to build up their confidence in hiring disabled people, so they realise it's not such a daunting task by themselves.”

McLaren is studying for a diploma in forensic psychology, and she feels hopeful about her future for the first time.

“I feel like there is a future for my career, and it's not just wasted training and education,” she said.

'There are plenty of people with disabilities with no criminal record and a tertiary education who are struggling to get jobs.'