Lina Edmunds

Our experiences with employment agencies that have been provided with Govt funding haven’t been positive. It ends up been an ongoing pathetic of disappointment & excuses.

At first we were reassured that employment would be available to suit my son’s needs. Epilepsy will be ok!
As previously with another agency, we are sent jobs to apply for, to meet their statistics and to prove that we are compliant.
Jobs that are on seek & indeed, where’s there are 100’s if applicants!!! How can a person with a disability or medical condition compete in that market.

Clearly there is no list of employers or jobs that have been customised to the client. Recent jobs have been full time factory work, that is available to anyone, all of the time.

We emphasised the need to feel valued, meet new people, lifting confidence, self esteem and independence. Over the years & all the different case managers, they have all said that it could all be provided! The turn over of staff was very noticeable. Seven years later and 3 different agencies, there’s been nothing. The jobs my son has found on a casual contract basis, we have found & managed ourselves.

Living with Epilepsy can be very isolating, the suicide rate of people living with this condition is 33% higher than the general population. More people live with Epilepsy than Parkinson’s, MS & muscular dystrophy combined, year we have no supports because there is no Govt funding to agencies like Epilepsy WA, yet the employments agency are given so much at the start of sign up & then for every month, with no return for many. As we walk out the door after an appt, we are forgotten until 5 minutes before we attend the next appt.