Meera Modi - Guest post #3

Read Meera's last post here

What's your employment background? How did you get to this point?

After graduating, I took various jobs from indoors post-person with the Royal Mail to Macromedia Flash developer where I spent a week creating a flash website which was used to exhibit students' work. After several months searching for a suitable job, I filled a vacancy at Dering Employment Services as an Employment Advisor supporting deaf and hard of hearing people. My role was to break down barriers and help them get jobs by providing an interpreter for their interviews and in their workplace, ensuring they have fair access and equal treatment to non-deaf members of society. Within three months working for Dering (which mainly employs the deaf), I decided I needed more of a challenge. The job as a W1 Project Assistant came up at the BBC on the Extend scheme. I did not hesitate in applying for the job despite the obstacles of communicating with hearing people.

I have had prospective employers hang up on me once they realise that I am deaf. That's why I feel the Extend scheme is so important. It provides people like me with an opportunity to prove themselves and build their confidence and employment chances for the future.

I think it's positive that some employers provide deaf people with interpreters but I think there needs to be a shift in culture in the office. What I mean is by that is that communication skills often need highlighting. For example, people still need to learn basic deaf awareness (such as eye contact). Providing an interpreter isn't the answer to all problems. I think it is very positive that the BBC provides deaf awareness I hope they remain aware of the need to update deaf awareness training to compensate for staff turnover so, that new staff also learn how to fit in with our deaf aware culture.