AFDO is represented on a reference group looking at the National Disability Workforce. In December 2009, the Industry Skills Council developed a draft report for consideration by the reference group entitled Review of Existing Skills Framework for the Disability Workforce: Increasing Capacity report.

Our representative on this reference group, Jill Fowler, was concerned that people with disabilities had not been consulted in the compilation of the report. Subsequently the Industry Skill’s Council provided funding to AFDO to facilitate consultations for the project which included focus groups in Western Australia, South Australia and Victoria; and an online survey. (These states were chosen due to the limitation of the timeframes.)

Data was analysed from the surveys and meetings and key themes emerged which highlighted embedded cultural tension and a perceived fear by service providers to embrace rights based social policy agendas. The tension assumes that there is a significant lack of trust by policy and structural frameworks for people living with disability to exercise their self-determination and choice as citizens.

Disability Workforce issues from the perspective of people living with disability include

• the culture of professional control over people living with disability
• lives exacerbated by outdated disability policy frameworks/structures,
• lack of meaningful participation in policy development and structural reform agendas,
• embedded benevolent ideologies within organisational culture,
• ‘disability as a tragedy’ imagery, and
• a ‘one-size fits all approach’ to service delivery.

The full report is available by contacting AFDO, and will soon be placed on the AFDO website.