Ladies and gentlemen, members of Parliament, good morning.
It is with great pleasure that our organization, the Association pour l'intégration sociale d'Ottawa, or AISO, has agreed to join the ranks of this committee as a witness.
As a francophone agency working with people with intellectual disabilities and their families, we are at the forefront of observing the multiple opportunities and skills available to them. I represent the association today as vice-president of the board of directors, but I am, first and foremost, a parent of an adult with an intellectual disability: my son, Louis-Philippe, who is a labour market success story.
I am also accompanied by Ms. Gisèle Parisien, who is a support supervisor at AISO.
To provide you with some background, the AISO was founded in 1991 and offers diversified services, including employment services, to francophones with intellectual disabilities. We are designated under the French Services Act of Ontario, and our main funding comes from the Ministry of Community and Social Services of Ontario. Our organization is also a provincial member of Community Living Ontario, or CLO, and works closely with the CACL, the Canadian Association for Community Living. Lastly, we are the founding members of another organization that offered employment services. These services were integrated into our organization in April 2011.
There are 55 people who are actively supported, including 22 who are employed and 14 who are interns or volunteers. Of the 22 people who are employed or interns, only 7 work more than 20 hours a week, and only 2 of them earn a little more than minimum wage. That said, the vast majority of them would like to work more than 20 hours a week for an appropriate contribution, because they are ready, eager and able. Close to 58% of people we support are, unfortunately, not considered competitive on the labour market, a proportion of 32 out of 55.
As my colleagues said, the working population of people with intellectual disabilities is underrepresented on the labour market, whereas this population can be a driving force. In this context, in November 2012, we attended the unveiling of the National Strategy for Employment of the Canadian Association for Community Living, here in Ottawa. According to the latest data produced by the CACL, there are approximately 500,000 people who would be a viable human solution, and thus contribute to their personal development on their own and that of a great country, and their communities and localities. To do this, they need the appropriate support, or need to be the beneficiaries of some investment from the community, combined with the leadership of potential employers. Unfortunately, we still see that several of these people, the majority of them even, continue to be excluded, live a segregated life, and are isolated.
When we talk about supporting or assisting a person with a view to including him or her into the labour market, our organization, like several others in the country, begins by developing an evaluation and initial assessment of their competencies and skills, including helping them prepare and seek employment. This approach also includes assisting with their integration, supporting them in the workplace, as well as mentoring the employer, as my colleagues mentioned. Since people with intellectual disabilities are also often exposed to more precarious and less desirable employment, it is key that our organization remain present in order to offer support and assistance based on the needs of the person and their work environment.
As several barriers are still very present, there are solutions that would allow people with intellectual disabilities to increase their civic and economic contributions, by providing support to employers in particular.
Research indicates that one of the main reasons employers do not hire people with intellectual disabilities lies in the fact that they know little about these people, do not understand their needs, and do not know how to interact with them. Raising awareness through promotion of campaigns at the national level would certainly address this form of prejudice.
Moreover, we need to facilitate the transition between high school and the labour market. A vast majority of people with intellectual disabilities find themselves with virtually nothing at the end of high school. They do not have access to any services and seldom have, if at all, the opportunity to attend postsecondary schools or are on long waiting lists to obtain resources that can support them. Therefore, they are shut out when they could actively participate and contribute to the economic development and advancement of our communities.
We also have to ensure education and postsecondary inclusion. Experience shows that when there is inclusion of postsecondary education as well as programs tailored to their needs, 80% get and maintain employment in their fields of study. Again, it is important that this access be provided in the language of their choice.
Let's use Ottawa as an example. Despite the large francophone community of people with intellectual disabilities, only a handful of them have access to postsecondary education in French because no such program exists currently. We, along with families from the community and various partners, are putting our efforts into mitigating the situation leading to the emergence of a postsecondary program in French that would enable them to acquire competencies and develop their skills to be able to obtain remunerated employment through inclusion. In addition to contributing to the rise and prosperity of our communities, they would be able to improve their situation and quality of life, as well as reach levels of acceptable and suitable annual income. As it is, only those persons who are proficient in English can benefit from postsecondary education but they must go to English schools.
We also need to develop a network of employers. It is essential to educate communities and employers about the labour opportunities that people with intellectual disabilities can offer. Communications strategies must be implemented in communities so that we can establish a greater number of partnerships, while educating associations and occupational groups through targeted messaging with a goal of full employment for this important group of our population. We must build on success stories. There are so many. Yet, they remain unknown when they should be promoted.
I am now going to talk to you as a parent. I cannot overlook the success story of my son Louis-Philippe who, thanks to services offered by agencies like the AISO and the support from its counsellors, first held a part-time, then a full-time job. Versatile, he likes to learn and has developed various skills at major retailers, mainly: Rona, Home Depot and Loblaws. Now working at Canadian Tire for almost six years, he has a full-time position as a front-store clerk. As a handyman, he helps his colleagues from various departments. He assembles bicycles, installs display units, gets carts in the parking lot and assists clients by carrying their purchases to their vehicles. Louis-Philippe is always ready to serve with a smile—more so at work than at home, I must confess.
In addition to being a major asset for any employer, people with intellectual disabilities are loyal employees: they are punctual and are often a source of inspiration for their environment and, according to their supervisors, their co-workers.
In addition, we need to develop entrepreneurship and support the emergence of small businesses. The development of entrepreneurship from a unique idea represents a promising solution for people with intellectual disabilities. They should have access to any program that supports entrepreneurship like any other citizen, but based on an approach tailored to their needs, and based on expected results. Furthermore, there are many social enterprises that want to be the innovative and creative answer to new labour market niches. In our opinion, this is one of the key components that must be prioritized in a search of prospects for full inclusion in the workforce.
Lastly, we need to modernize the systems. To ensure the prospect of full employment and professional inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities, we must all re-evaluate our ways of doing things; refine our vision to include people with intellectual disabilities like anyone else, aiming for their active participation in the labour market, not to mention the important economic contribution they could make. We should collectively reconsider our strategies and our approach so that we become innovative in our practices.
In addition to the solutions put forward that could become, without a doubt, elements of action, as well as sustainable and favourable social changes, we must stay the course in educating the general public, with a focus on educational and labour communities. We also need to work closely with existing networks in order to re-examine our service models and approaches geared at full and complete inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities in the work force. We should ask ourselves on an ongoing basis how we can include, both socially and economically, people with intellectual disabilities who are ready, willing and able. We should help them succeed and support them in achieving their goals.
I thank you for your time. I'm available to answer your questions in either French or English.
Thank you.