A job's available at work -- a promotion you deserve. The boss hints that it's yours for the taking. But instead of going for it, you let the deadline pass and tell the boss you're happy where you are.
Your expense account is due and you still haven't done it. You take it to the department secretary, promising to buy her lunch if she'll work out the numbers for you -- again.
No matter how talented, creative and clever you are, you feel inept, stupid and isolated. You're under constant stress, afraid your colleagues -- or worse, your boss -- will discover the truth.
Until now, most people with learning disabilities have struggled to cope at work on their own. But experts say employers have to start identifying and accommodating learning-disabled staff or risk losing out on a powerful resource.
For much of Mike Hicks's working life, attention deficit disorder and total lack of skill with numbers and organizational abilities kept him from recognizing his abilities. He regarded aptitudes with music, writing and personal communication as "sort of second-class strengths."
It didn't help that many of his jobs were organizational rather than creative. "I had responsibility for budgets and it was a real problem for me in all evaluations that were done of me. You didn't feel like you were worthwhile . . . I felt stupid." He consulted five psychiatrists over eight years to help deal with the depression that resulted from loss of self-esteem.
He's not alone: An estimated three million Canadians suffer from learning disabilities. The most common of the 70 different types and sub-types are dyslexia -- which involves difficulty in reading, writing and spelling (dysgraphia) and math (dyscalcula) -- and auditory processing disorders. While some experts add attention deficit disorder (ADD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), others don't consider them learning disabilities. The exact cause of learning disabilities is unclear, though they are linked to neurological disorders that may be due to genetic or environmental factors, such as pre-natal exposure to toxic substances, such as pesticides, mercury or lead. Scientists say dyslexia has to do with the way the brain is wired.
"It wasn't until I was around 40 that I felt really what I do has value -- that's when I was able to spread my wings," Mr. Hicks says.
Now 50, he has worked for the past 10 years as creative vice-president of HyperActive Productions, where his position as chief writer and director plays to his strengths. Even better, his boss knows about his disabilities -- indeed, he has his own.
Not everyone is so lucky. Despite increased awareness of the issue, many people with learning disabilities still live in a state of constant anxiety on the job -- afraid they'll make a mistake, afraid to tell their employers they need help. They'd rather cope than disclose, fearing the stigma of being labelled, rejected, passed over for promotion or even fired.
"They hide in the background and they're afraid of taking promotions because if they go for that promotion there will be demands made on them that they're not used to," says Claudette Larocque, spokeswoman for the Learning Disabilities Association of Canada. "They're going to have to develop a new system to hide their disability or they'll have to disclose they have a learning disability. Many of them simply don't go for that promotion because of that.
"It's not very easy for them to be able to talk to someone about it, especially if they don't know what kind of reception they're going to get, whether they're going to be accepted or rejected or . . . going to be made a fool of. Many of these people have really had a lot of failures [in being accepted]and they're just not ready to risk that again."
But hiding a learning disability from an employer doesn't work.
"If you try to hide it and you try to just get by with it, the bottom line is your work's going to suffer," says Kevin Myers, co-founder of HyperActive Productions, an Ottawa-based multimedia company that produces industrial films, television programs and commercials and advertising campaigns. "People are going to see your failures and they'll never see all the positive things you do."
He knows. He spent his high-school years coping with a combination of dyslexia -- making reading and writing a chore -- and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, while at the same time earning As in math.
"I'm pretty open with the guys here about my learning disability, and each of them has their own as well," he says. "It's got nothing to do with how smart you are -- people with learning disabilities are not dumb. But if you're not truthful to your employer, you're going to be frustrated in every job you get."
Robin Lee, president of Lee Valley Tools in Ottawa, agrees.
"It's their responsibility to disclose all of that so that the employer can accommodate," says Mr. Lee, whose company welcomes employees with learning disabilities and other special needs. "It's a co-operative thing because, ultimately, our best work is done by happy employees. And if it's structuring a job a little bit differently so that it means the person is going to be happier, they're going to stay here longer, we're going to be happier and the quality of work is going to be better."
For that to happen, Ms. Larocque says, employers have to "open the door so that you have a welcoming, comforting atmosphere so people can say, 'I'm struggling here and I think I may need accommodation.' "
The first step is acceptance: providing the right kind of working environment to enable an employee with a learning disability to do the job and fostering a receptive attitude among their fellow workers.
"Just talking about it and having it out there opens up a lot of discussion and a lot of the workers become a lot more comfortable with it," Ms. Larocque says.
Awareness is growing in part because of the influx of university graduates with disabilities and the efforts of groups such as the learning disabilities association.
In the past 25 years, schools have recognized the need to help children with LD, says Ms. Larocque. "Those students are now going into the workplace and expecting the same kind of accommodation they received in postsecondary education. That's where they're hitting the roadblock, because the workplace has not dealt with this in the past and has not come into contact with the avalanche of students that are now graduating."
The association has just completed a mailing to more than 10,000 human resources departments promoting its new book and CD Rom, Roadmap on Learning Disabilities for Employers.
The resource package outlines:
The business case for hiring employees with learning disabilities.
People with learning disabilities bring a high level of skills to the workplace.
"It's a hidden market that has not been tapped as yet," says Karen Thornton, program director of ALDERCentre in Toronto, a non-profit employment resource agency. "If employers are aware that individuals with learning disabilities can do the job and do it tremendously well, they will realize they are capable of doing jobs that are way above the skill sets of the average population."
The legal obligations to accommodate them.
The Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Canadian Human Rights Act protect workers with any disability from losing their jobs or being denied workplace advancement. The courts have addressed the rights of the disabled at work, including at least one related to a learning disability. But while the rulings clarified the employers' legal obligations, there are no hard rules. Each situation must be dealt with on its own merits. However, employers have a legal 'duty to accommodate' employees with a disability by providing whatever equipment, facilities or services may be necessary.
How those accommodations can be provided.
With learning disabilities, accommodation can range from measures such as providing written instructions on tape or CD in the case of those with reading limitations, allowing extra time to accomplish work assignments or -- for those with auditory processing problems -- reducing background noise or providing an enclosed work space. More sophisticated assistive equipment, such as specialized computer programs or electronic scanners, may be required but, in most cases, the cost is negligible.
It's not just employers who need to recognize the strengths of learning disabled workers: so do the people with the disabilities.
Howard Eaton of Vancouver, who counsels fellow dyslexics and others with learning difficulties, says the transitions from secondary school to university to work are major challenges. His advice: Advocate for yourself, understand your limits and try to make the right choices.
"The research that's coming out now about what makes adults and children with learning disabilities successful shows it's unrelated to IQ score, social or economic status or race," says Mr. Eaton, who was diagnosed with severe developmental dyslexia in 1972 and endured years of academic failure before he recognized the nature of his disability. "The No. 1 thing for success is self-awareness and acceptance of it."
Like Kevin Myers, Mr. Eaton came to recognize his own limitations while struggling through school and university before establishing a business inspired by his own experiences. Along with Leslie Coull, he formed the Eaton Coull Learning Group, providing assessments and counselling to others with learning disabilities.
"You actually have to have above-average intelligence to have dyslexia," Mr. Eaton says. "Many kids have remarkable visual and spatial abilities." But many people with learning disabilities never advance beyond high school, usually because they are reluctant to make their disability known for fear of being labelled.
"What's sad about this is that the unemployment rate is much higher for those with learning disabilities," says Mr. Eaton. "The other startling statistic is that, of those kids that commit suicide between 14 and 18 years of age, 50 per cent of them had been previously diagnosed with learning disabilities. Many of them lose hope and they don't see anything that's good about their lives."
Mike Hicks found new hope after years of depression. "I took the time to rebuild how I felt about myself and reassess my own self-worth based on saying, `You can't do it all. There are very few people who can.' " His advice for other people with learning disabilities? "Do what you do well and celebrate that that's an enormous talent."
How to make it work
Learning disabilities may be divided into five categories:
Visual: poor visual memory, reversals in writing.
Auditory: poor auditory memory, speech problems.
Motor: poor hand-eye co-ordination.
Organizational: poor ability in organizing time or space.
Conceptual: poor social skills and peer relations, difficulty correctly interpreting non-verbal language.
By creating a non-discriminatory workplace, employers allow LD employees to be as successful as their co-workers. Employees also have a responsibility make their needs known.
Some best practices for workplace accommodation include:
Reduce background noises that may distract those with auditory processing problems.
Allow sufficient time for instructions, questions and tests.
Allow work to proceed at the employees' own pace and allow time to complete tasks.
Provide a written copy of instructions and presentations.
Provide tests/training materials to those with reading problems on tape, CD or video.
Provide voice-activated computers and other assistive technology when appropriate.
Make greater use of oral presentations and discussions.
Demonstrate what needs to be done.
Allow work to proceed at the employees' own pace.
Help managers and employees understand learning disabilities.
Provide a mentoring or tutoring system.
Misconceptions
Myth: People with learning disabilities are stupid.
Truth: They simply learn and retain information differently. Their disability is a result of a neurological disorder than can result in visual or auditory problems or attention disorders.
Myth: They simply are 'not trying hard enough.'
Truth: It is the invisible nature of LD that helps create this myth. They can perform very well in the workplace with some accommodation and guidance.
Myth: They are better left alone.
Truth: Some have developed strategies to cope on their own. But they constantly worry they'll be 'found out' and branded as incompetent or shunned by other workers. They need to be encouraged and supported by the employer and by fellow workers.
Myth: They don't want help.
Truth: Help and support can have a huge benefit. It is critical to recognize the condition and deal with it positively and openly.
Myth: It is very costly to accommodate a person with LD.
Truth: A U.S. study found that 15 per cent of accommodations cost nothing; 51 per cent cost less than $500; another 12 per cent cost less than $1,000 and 22 per cent cost more than $1,000. Accommodation can mean as little as allowing more time to complete tasks, speaking more clearly at meetings or providing written backup for verbal instructions.
Myth: Accommodating an employee with LD has no benefit for the employer.
Truth: People with LD form a very large talent pool at a time when skilled labour is at a premium. Workers with LD will make the most of the opportunities offered them. And they are fiercely loyal to employers who have given them their big break.
A short list of 'over-achievers'
Some well-known people diagnosed as, or thought to be, learning disabled:
Tom Cruise, actor (dyslexia)
Charles Schwab, multimillionaire investor (dyslexia)
Winston Churchill, politician, prime minister (multiple learning disabilities)
Albert Einstein, mathematician (considered poor student, undiagnosed)
Richard Branson, corporate executive (dyslexia)
George S. Patton, general (dysgraphia)
Ludwig van Beethoven, composer (poor reader, ADD)
Werner von Braun, jet propulsion scientist (difficulty with math)
John T. Chambers, corporate executive (dyslexia)
Thomas Edison, inventor (considered a slow learner)
William Hewlett, corporate executive (dyslexia)
Fred Epstein, neurosurgeon (dyslexia)
Woodrow Wilson, U.S. president (dyslexia)
Alexander Graham Bell, inventor (considered a slow learner)
Jay Leno, entertainer (dyslexia)
Ted Turner, media executive (dyslexia)
Leonardo da Vinci, inventor, artist (difficulty reading)
QUOTES
"I was, on the whole, considerably discouraged by my school days. It was not pleasant to feel myself completely outclassed and left behind at the beginning of the race."
- Winston Churchill
"I had to train myself to focus my attention. I became very visual and learned to create mental images to comprehend what I read."
- Tom Cruise
"I couldn't read. I just scraped by...now I listen to books on tape."
- Charles Schwab
"My teacher says I'm addled...my father thought I was stupid and I almost thought I must be a dunce."
- Thomas Edison