The Autism Job Club written by Michael Bernick and Richard Holden is a book I have been waiting to read for a long time. Finally, got my hands on it and it definitely lived up to my expectations. Looking for ways to find meaningful and satisfying employment for our children on the Autism spectrum is something every parent will relate to, particularly if the child is in his/her teens. This book will open your eyes to a path that has helped many and make the journey a little bit easier.
The book starts off by introducing us to the concept of the Autism Job Club, wherein, parents, job coaches and well wishers get together and discuss and find ways to help the Autistic adults find ways to secure a meaningful career. They introduce us to a few members of the job club who work as a handyman, supermarket clerk, transcription part time jobs, etc. and talks about how difficult it is to find a permanent solution to this problem. The authors suggest that family members have to take the initiative and find ways to include them. For example, they share a success story, where a father who works in big chain superstore, finds the way to convince the employers to train and provide employment opportunity to Autistic adults in the warehouse. This hugely successful attempt prompted them to expand it to other stores too.
The authors also stress the importance of different types of employment - part time, apprentice or full time project based. They feel that getting the opportunity to learn essential job skills while working as an apprentice is valuable even if the pay is very little or none.
There are wonderful chapters about getting in to job search in the internet age, using social media and job networks. I particularly liked the chapter on the Autism job coach, who help Autistic adults in contacting potential employers, application process, training for interviews, and most importantly, finding the skill set of the individual and honing it to meet the job requirements! Job coaches are the need of the hour.
There are separate chapters on the growing internet economy employment and practical economy jobs. Though the stats are mostly not applicable to Indians, the techniques and ideas discussed in this book are universal and can easily be adapted to suit our economy.
I hope you find this book helpful. You can purchase it on Amazon India
