Employment issues...any thoughts?

[csalz]

I am a speech pathology graduate student at Illinois State University. I have been researching the issues surrounding employment for people who stutter. I have noticed that there isn't much research in this area. Does anyone have any insight that they would like to share on this issue? Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

[Clutterer]

I would like to know more about this also. I'm a speech pathology student as well and I have a speech disorder myself. It's definitely going to be a big challenge for me to give therapy to people, but I feel like I could do a better job of understanding them than a person who never had speech problems.

[Bill Hargis]

In the fifties when I entered the work force, there was a lot of discrimination against severe stutterers, I was told that I couldn't be hired because my severe blocks would cost too much since I was getting paid by the hour. I think this is still going on although they use some other excuse to not hire you. I took a menial job and built a reputation as a good worker and managed to get into better job and earn a pension, It was an uphill battle though. I personally know some young stutterers who are facing the same thing. I continue to write my congressmen and senators, trying to get some research done and some anti discrimination laws passed, if all stutterers would join me and let them know what a large bloc vote is out there, we could see some results. Severe stuttering is a handicap.

[jamesm]

First of all, that is a great research topic! Definitely more research needs to be done. I think something to consider would have to be the severity of the stuttering in individuals both with and without employment. So, I guess a good step would be some sort of survey for stutterers to 1)gauge their severity 2)employment status related to education level (are stutterers with college degrees more likely to make more or less money than non-stutterers with the same degrees) 3) satisfaction with that current job/career (do they just feel like it's "the only opportunity they have") 4)feelings/thoughts associated with employment discrimination AND/OR mobility within their careers (i.e. hindrances of promotions and career growth)....just some thoughts. Good luck?

[Rich]

Discrimination against people who stutter is tolerated more in our society than racial and other forms of bias and this discrimination effects hiring. Almost all job advertits these days mention “excellent communication skills” required and this could be used against people who stutter. The interview process can be trying for people who stutter. And these days the interview process itself seems to have changed such that it has become ridiculously long and drawn out. I think that the one good thing is that people who stutter tend to be very smart and hard working so once they get their foot in the door they do a good job of proving themselves.

[emily445455]

My biggest thing is confidence. I could probably get hired for all sorts of jobs, since my stuttering is mild-moderate and I am a nice person. I think to myself that I can't do certain jobs because of my speech, so I don't even try. I went to school for 3 yrs to be a teacher, then switched majors because speaking infront of a classroom scared me. Looking back, I regret doing that....I could have done it if I wanted to.

[amey]

In the fifties when I entered the work force, there was a lot of discrimination against severe stutterers, I was told that I couldn't be hired because my severe blocks would cost too much since I was getting paid by the hour. I think this is still going on although they use some other excuse to not hire you. I took a menial job and built a reputation as a good worker and managed to get into better job and earn a pension, It was an uphill battle though. I personally know some young stutterers who are facing the same thing. I continue to write my congressmen and senators, trying to get some research done and some anti discrimination laws passed, if all stutterers would join me and let them know what a large bloc vote is out there, we could see some results. Severe stuttering is a handicap.

Bill, we stutterers ARE covered under the ADA (AMericans with Disabiliies ACT, 1990). We ARE protected. It has to be up to the individual to press the issue further becaue A LOT of employers dont understand that stuttering falls under this law and the employers continue to discriminate.

[Raezaun]

In the fifties when I entered the work force, there was a lot of discrimination against severe stutterers, I was told that I couldn't be hired because my severe blocks would cost too much since I was getting paid by the hour. I think this is still going on although they use some other excuse to not hire you. I took a menial job and built a reputation as a good worker and managed to get into better job and earn a pension, It was an uphill battle though. I personally know some young stutterers who are facing the same thing. I continue to write my congressmen and senators, trying to get some research done and some anti discrimination laws passed, if all stutterers would join me and let them know what a large bloc vote is out there, we could see some results. Severe stuttering is a handicap.

I totally agree with you, the politicians they only know and care about the number of votes they can get, if we for example sign a letter with million signature in it to a candidate promising voting for him or her be sure the next term of any senator will have a fund for stuttering researches, because they then will have your vote for life if they help find a cure for stuttering.
I think 3 million stutterer in the US alone is really a huge number that can make the difference, remember John Carry was only beaten by 775 vote if I still remember, so I believe we can make a difference in any elections if we push it enough. Joe Biden said that he was a stutterer, that means he suffered from it and felt what it means to stutter, so lets see what he can do for us, not what he can say.
About the jobs not everyone is ready to hire a stutterer, but not everyone would mind hiring a stutterer, it all depends on the person hiring, and it also depend on the person that stutter, as you said you built yourself a good reputation for you to be hired and proved you worth to be hired, remember the only goal for any business is lucrative, so you really have to prove you worth the try just like anyone else, there is discrimination but we should not always blame it only on our stuttering, if I apply for a job and there are 5 more people applying for the same job and the employer only need 2 people, the other 3 that are not hired are not stuttering but they still did not get the job. So I don't think it's always our stuttering that is in our way. It's a market that is opened for competition.
Kinds
Rae

[csalz]

I would like to know more about this also. I'm a speech pathology student as well and I have a speech disorder myself. It's definitely going to be a big challenge for me to give therapy to people, but I feel like I could do a better job of understanding them than a person who never had speech problems.
There are several people in my program who stutter and they are great therapists...I think that it gives them an advantage over everyone else in the department as they have an empathy toward their clients that we don't have. I'm sure that you will be great as a therapist...it's a challenge for all of us but we just have to work hard at it and not give up.

[csalz]

In the fifties when I entered the work force, there was a lot of discrimination against severe stutterers, I was told that I couldn't be hired because my severe blocks would cost too much since I was getting paid by the hour. I think this is still going on although they use some other excuse to not hire you. I took a menial job and built a reputation as a good worker and managed to get into better job and earn a pension, It was an uphill battle though. I personally know some young stutterers who are facing the same thing. I continue to write my congressmen and senators, trying to get some research done and some anti discrimination laws passed, if all stutterers would join me and let them know what a large bloc vote is out there, we could see some results. Severe stuttering is a handicap.
That is the biggest reason that I am researching this topic...to bring awareness to the fact that there isn't a lot of valuable research available. My intention was to generate discussion on this topic in the hopes that some awareness will be stirred up and more research will be initiated. Thank you for your reply and good luck with your efforts.

[csalz]

First of all, that is a great research topic! Definitely more research needs to be done. I think something to consider would have to be the severity of the stuttering in individuals both with and without employment. So, I guess a good step would be some sort of survey for stutterers to 1)gauge their severity 2)employment status related to education level (are stutterers with college degrees more likely to make more or less money than non-stutterers with the same degrees) 3) satisfaction with that current job/career (do they just feel like it's "the only opportunity they have") 4)feelings/thoughts associated with employment discrimination AND/OR mobility within their careers (i.e. hindrances of promotions and career growth)....just some thoughts. Good luck?
Thanks! Those are great suggestions!

[csalz]

Discrimination against people who stutter is tolerated more in our society than racial and other forms of bias and this discrimination effects hiring. Almost all job advertits these days mention “excellent communication skills” required and this could be used against people who stutter. The interview process can be trying for people who stutter. And these days the interview process itself seems to have changed such that it has become ridiculously long and drawn out. I think that the one good thing is that people who stutter tend to be very smart and hard working so once they get their foot in the door they do a good job of proving themselves.
This is actually something I came across while researching for my literature review. I read that employment issues for people who stutter really started to come about around the turn of the 20th century when the workforce went from mainly labor-based jobs to communication-based jobs. Now most jobs require some sort of communication skill in order to be successful.

[csalz]

My biggest thing is confidence. I could probably get hired for all sorts of jobs, since my stuttering is mild-moderate and I am a nice person. I think to myself that I can't do certain jobs because of my speech, so I don't even try. I went to school for 3 yrs to be a teacher, then switched majors because speaking infront of a classroom scared me. Looking back, I regret doing that....I could have done it if I wanted to.
I am a firm believer in the notion that you are able to do whatever you are passionate about as long as you work hard enough at it. Of course, there are exceptions to the rule (I, for example, will never be a successful rocket scientist or classical singer so I'm not even going to attempt it), but it never hurts to keep pushing forward. I have the feeling that if you are a nice person and try your best at any job you pursue without giving up, nobody will even care about the fact that you stutter. In fact, they might not even notice.