A woman walked into the City/School Administration Center building downtown Tuesday morning and asked Wayne Erickson, the man at the front desk, where the Rapid City Area Schools Office of Indian Education office was.
“Third floor,” he said right away, without having to consult a map or list, even though he’s been on the job just a few weeks.
Even if he had a map, it would be of no use. Erickson is blind, and has had to memorize the location of the dozens of offices inside the three-story government office building.
He said he was happy to take on the challenge and is grateful for his new job, one that lets him interact with the public and feel like he’s making a valuable contribution to the community.
The city may soon be offering more opportunities to workers with disabilities as part of a new effort from Mayor Sam Kooiker. The mayor will discuss his proposed “disability preference policy” as part of two events planned for Tuesday, Oct. 4, in recognition of National Disability Employment Awareness Month.
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The policy would guarantee a job interview for qualified people with disabilities competing for city jobs.
Born with a progressive retina condition in which sight gradually deteriorates, Erickson also suffered a stroke in 2002 that left him
temporarily needing a wheelchair.
An Air Force veteran and former lumber mill employee, he wanted to get back to work but found himself depressed, frustrated and drinking too much.
He credits several agencies that help the disabled with working
together to get him back on the path to productivity: the state Division of Rehabilitative Services, Black Hills Workshop and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Kim Kringen, an employment specialist at Black Hills Workshop, thought of Erickson immediately when city community resources
director Jeff Barbier called on the mayor’s direction to find someone to work the front desk. Previously, the position had been shared on a rotating schedule by city staffers in other departments, which Kooiker didn’t think was an efficient use of their time.
“It’s very difficult to place persons who have a visual disability,” Kringen said.
But she said Erickson had a good work history and work ethic, and had been working hard to find a position. He had been working at Dickey’s Barbecue Pit washing dishes, a job he’d been grateful for and was successful in, but he was looking for more hours.
She knew Erickson could handle the job independently with some supports in place.
“I think some employers are fearful” to hire people with disabilities, Kringen said. “Some look at it as, it’s going to be a baby-sitting job.”
But she also said employers in the Black Hills have come a long way in the past 20 years, thanks to awareness and exposure.
Now, Erickson works 28 hours a week, riding the Dial-A-Ride bus from his home to city hall, where he sits in the square cubicle in the front lobby and greets people,
saying “Good afternoon,” and responding if they need assistance.
He soon will get a computer with special software that will read aloud a list of daily meetings and their locations. Now, he memorizes the list, which his wife reads to him each evening.
“I’ve always been a proud
person,” he said. “I make sure that what I do is done to the best I can. I think it’s very important that when any person with a disability gets a chance to work, they need to do the very best they can. The more a person with a disability can do, the more the employer will give them a chance.”
More people like Erickson could find employment with the city under the mayor’s proposed policy, which is expected to come before the city council in October.
Tammie Krumm, city human resources director, said the policy mirrors the state’s and is similar to the city’s existing veterans preference policy.
“A lot of people wouldn’t apply otherwise,” Krumm said. “They would think, ‘I don’t have a chance.’”
People with disabilities who wish to apply for a city job would be able to become “certified” by the Rapid City vocational rehabilitation center as having the needed skills to perform the job duties.
“We would still hire the most qualified candidate for the
position,” Krumm said, but the certified candidate would be guaranteed an interview, which not everyone gets. The interviewer would not be told that the candidate had been certified through the disability preference policy.
“It is not affirmative action,” Kooiker said. “It’s an opportunity to level the playing field.”
Kooiker, who has cerebral palsy and who has worked as a vocational rehabilitation counselor, said he has a passion for serving people with disabilities.
He remembers applying for a job at a restaurant in his hometown in Iowa as a teenager, and being turned down because of the way he walked.
“I found that very humiliating,” he said.
With city government as one of Rapid City’s biggest employers with 735 full-time employees, he hopes to open doors to employment for more people.
Helping people with disabilities find work helps everyone, said Margie Helgeson, Rapid City
district supervisor for the state
Department of Human Services’ Division of Rehabilitation Services.
She said when people with disabilities find work, they become more self-sufficient and depend less on government Social Security benefits.
“Our mission is to not only help them get back into work, but also become more independent citizens in every part of their work,” Helgeson said.
Her department provides individualized services depending on the worker’s needs, including job training and rehabilitation.
“It’s what the person with the disability needs in order to level the playing field, so that their skills and abilities can be utilized despite the fact that they have some other limitations,” she said.
At a time when employers are looking for every efficiency in
hiring, public awareness and overcoming stereotypes are two challenges to be met, she said.
“It’s a matter of educating the general public that there are people with disabilities that have their own skills and talents to give back to the community,” she said.
Contact Barbara Soderlin at 394-8417