THE ROADTO

Invisible THE

TALENT POOL

BY PIPPA STACEY

Pippa Stacey explores the barriers that still face people living with chronic illness who are looking for employment

My chronic illness diagnosis came during my first year of university. I struggled through my degree during the day, and at night I laid awake, worrying about what on earth would happen after I graduated. Like many people with long-term illnesses, I’m one of the ‘in-betweeners’. I knew that I was well enough to have a career in some capacity, but I definitely wasn’t well enough to do full-time hours, commute to a workplace, or take on any kind of physical exertion. If I wanted to perform at my best, I knew I needed remote and flexible work where I could carefully pace myself and manage my health. I just didn’t know where to find it.

I began applying to any and every work-from-home opportunity I could find online, as well as programmes designed for disabled people. At this time, I found it incredibly telling that even one well-known scheme designed specifically for disabled graduates wouldn’t accept my application because my disability meant I couldn’t work full-time. Thankfully, I believe that scheme has now adapted, but I think this example perfectly illustrates how chronic and fluctuating illness has been excluded from conversations about disability and employment in the past. Fortunately, I’ve been one of the lucky ones. With enforced grit and self-advocacy, I’ve been able to find work in a range of roles in both an employed and self-employed capacity, and those experiences eventually led me to Astriid.

In short, Astriid is the platform I so badly needed back at the beginning of my own employment journey. Founded by David Shutts OBE following his cancer diagnosis, Astriid’s mission is to help people with long-term illnesses (as well as carers) find meaningful work with amazing employers. Our online platform helps bridge the gap between the Invisible Talent Pool (people who have

chronic health conditions who wish to find work), and the UK skills crisis. We match talented candidates with prospective employers, provide accessible training and work experience opportunities, consult with professionals in employment and recruitment, lobby with innovative ideas for change, and so much more. We recently carried out our first research project, and our findings show that talented people with long-term health conditions are still facing countless challenges in employment and recruitment:

There is a severe lack of flexible roles for chronically ill people entering the world of work or returning to work after ill-health absence. When identifying roles to apply for, the most common factors people looked for were flexible hours, remote working, and part-time contracts.

However, many were wary of disclosing their condition during recruitment, as they’ve been “made to feel like a waste of time and energy” and “just there as a tick box exercise”.

Many experience barriers within their job role or their environment, with almost half of our sample (48%) reporting it was difficult to secure reasonable adjustments in the workplace. Experiences varied depending on who in the organisation was responsible for organising reasonable adjustments, as “each interprets the policies differently”. Another reported “trouble finding the energy to fight for myself and my needs”. These difficulties can lead to people feeling forced out of work.

Employers and line managers play a pivotal role in a person’s experience of work. Positive relationships, such as open communication about needs and being given trust and autonomy, can make a significant difference. However, 89% of our sample felt that employers could be better informed about managing people with long-term illnesses.

One element of working with a chronic illness that often goes unspoken about is the impact of finding and being in work on a person’s quality of life. Those who are able to work, even flexibly and with adjustments, often have to make huge sacrifices to do so – when asked to discuss their work-life balance in an open-ended question, 66% of respondents who are currently in work reported that their work-life balance is poor. Essentially, experiences were more positive when participants felt supported in their role, with some reporting that being in work has had a transformative effect, but negative when they reported ongoing issues in their job role or working environment. From these research findings and everyday interactions with candidates, we can clearly see that people with longterm illnesses are being excluded from the world of work. It’s absolutely crucial that this issue become a central part of the conversation about disability and employment, especially in a post-pandemic world, and that organisations like Astriid can use their subject expertise to ensure the issue is tackled safely and sustainably. Our mission is to finally make the invisible talent pool visible. Will you join us? You can read the full report and find out more about Astriid’s work by visiting astriid.org.uk.

Astriid is the platform I so badly needed back at the beginning of my own employment journey