Part-Time and Summer Jobs (continued)

• There is no reason to exclude blind youngsters from the traditional part-time jobs such as snow shoveling, baby-sitting, and newspaper delivery.

• Friends and relatives may offer a job or a job lead.

• If your son or daughter is old enough, services from the regular state employment agency should be used. If the employment counselor suggests that the agency for the blind should be helping instead, explain that you want services from both agencies.

• Churches and other community groups often have an odd-job referral service especially for teenagers. In our community there is one called Rent-a-Kid.

• Other young people may have leads. Another teenager may know of an opening in the restaurant where he works; a busy baby-sitter may refer surplus customers to your son or daughter who is just getting started.

• Blind businessmen usually are especially willing to give a young blind person a chance, and to help him or her find job leads. The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), particularly, will be glad to try to help.

(The NFB coordinates, in conjunction with the United States Department of Labor, a very successful project called Job Opportunities for the Blind (JOB). This is a nationwide effort to help blind people get the information and locate the resources needed in order to become employable and to find jobs. Contact JOB at 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21230, for information on job-seeking, and for the name of a blind person near you.)

While recognizing the importance of earning money, it is valuable to note the benefits that often come from volunteer work. For example, my two sisters gained valuable experience during some of their school years by working as candy stripers in a hospital. After a time this volunteer job made them eligible for a nurse's aide course which led to part-time paying jobs at the same hospital. However, even without the matter of leading directly into actual employment, the work as candy stripers was very valuable. Marian became a physical therapist, and found the experience to be of direct benefit in her education. Margery became a biologist; she benefited from the general background of work experience. She also worked at a volunteer job in the field of biology and found that this, too, led to a summer job with pay. Moreover, both of my sisters are also homemakers and find the hospital background helpful in regard to home nursing techniques. Although my sisters are sighted, that is not important here because blind young people can and do have the same kinds of experiences -even to the details of doing the very same jobs described here.

My husband, who is a blind electrical engineer, found that work at the campus radio station helped prepare him for his career. Other common examples of volunteer work include: selling Girl Scout cookies, teaching Sunday School or other religious classes, supporting a political party through campaigning or office work, giving telephone Crisis Line assistance, and other community service projects.

In most respects, all of this is the same effort that should be made with a young sighted person. We must do the same kinds of things with blind young people. We must consider in addition, however, the greatest problem of blindness: public attitudes. Even when your son or daughter is well qualified for a given job, the employer's misconceptions may cause resistance toward hiring him or her. Overcoming this is the most difficult problem of all, and many materials have been published on this general subject by the NFB and JOB. Here are some suggestions from the experience of blind adults: 

• The young person must be well prepared to handle the job. Teachers and counselors of the blind should help with techniques in personal skills and personal grooming, as well as specific job skills such as child care. In my book, A Resource Guide for Parents and Educators of Blind Children, available from the National Federation of the Blind, I have set down a number of suggestions, including a detailed discussion of baby-sitting methods. 

• The young person should present a poised appearance and be ready to explain confidently how various tasks will be accomplished. If the employer does not bring up the subject of blindness, he/she probably is nevertheless thinking about it; it is wise for the applicant to bring it up and explain the methods that will be used. At the same time, however, keep blindness in perspective as a relatively minor factor; general qualifications for the position are far more important. 

• Although it is well to have an open discussion of blindness in a face-to-face interview, it is usually best not to mention blindness when calling or writing to ask for an interview. Too often the employer's misconceptions will result in no interview at all, and no real chance to explain about effective alternative methods. It is no more necessary to mention blindness before the interview than it is necessary to mention race, height, or other personal characteristics. 

• As a parent, consider carefully the advantages and disadvantages of your accompanying your son or daughter to a job interview. On the one hand, some youngsters really need help in talking with someone about a job. On the other hand, your presence implies that the young person is not able to handle things alone -after all, if he cannot even go to the interview alone, how could he take responsibility for the job itself? In general, with an older boy or girl we strongly discourage the parent's participation in a job interview. A possible alternative, if help is really needed, is to have a counselor or teacher participate rather than the parent. Also note that if you are needed for transportation only, you can and should stay away from the actual interview -even remaining outside the building. Furthermore, consider very carefully whether some other transportation is possible so that the young person can show complete independence. 

• In regard to formal employment applications by the teenager or young adult, become well-informed on civil rights laws and regulations. Discrimination solely on the basis of blindness is prohibited in many situations, and the National Federation of the Blind is working to get such protection strengthened and broadened. It is sometimes wise to mention judiciously to an employer that you know he does not wish to discriminate.

Recently I was talking with some blind high school students about part-time jobs and future plans. One young woman was describing how she is interested in becoming a veterinarian and already has a part-time job in a vet's office.
“Last week I helped with an autopsy on a horse,” she said. “I had to hold the heart.”