Pre-employment Service

A matter of a year ago, the Terres de l'Ebre Mental Health unit offered me the opportunity to be part of the users who attended the Pre-Labor Service and I accepted, as I very positively assessed the workshops, activities and dynamics they were working on.

And after this year, I have to say that they do offer work placements and workshops on social skills and other skills that people with mental or sensory disabilities may need to work on... but they do not adapt each of the activities to the particular needs and characteristics of each user.

It seems like a lie, considering that they are more than used to dealing with people with autism, ADHD, Tourette's, and all kinds of neurobiological conditions. But it is the reality. I will just name a few examples:

• You tell them to lower their voice, they can't hear you well, you say it again loudly and they tell you not to shout. But they don't take into account or question the fact that neurodivergent people have considerable difficulty controlling their voice volume in real time.

• As they always do with work practices in outdoor places, when the heat approaches, I notice and report that the hypersensitivity of the sun's contact with my skin causes me to have meltdown-type crises, and yes, they let you rest in the shade... for a moment. But they don't contemplate changing the type of work practice.

• And as a consequence, I exclaim, I shout, at meltdown crises due to sensory hypersensitivity to contact with the sun, and they pretend that I don't scandalize the crises so much.

Taking into account these circumstances or situations, it is worth stopping to think about whether or not it is worth participating in a pre-employment service for people with sensory disabilities.