Eliza Vieras was a PA in the entertainment industry for seven
years after leaving college. In 2010, Eliza was involved in
a serious road accident while cycling home from work and was
paralysed from the waist down.
"I suppose you'd call my old job glamorous. I was expected
to meet and greet clients, attend evening functions and rush
around during meetings to make sure everything ran smoothly.
Although the firm was very sympathetic after I had my accident,
I didn't feel I could go back to my old job and I doubt that
it would have been open for me even if I had wanted to return."
Eliza made a slow but steady recovery, but found it hard adapting
to a new way of life, living with a disability.
"After the accident, the last thing on my mind was work.
I had so many things to get used to not least being confined
to a wheelchair. I'd only ever worked as a PA and there wasn't
anything else I knew. My husband was able to support me financially
and I resigned myself to a life at home."
18-months after her accident, Eliza started to get bored and
frustrated at home and she spoke to a local careers advisor
about the prospect of working again.
"I wasn't very hopeful, but I felt I had to do something.
I was pleasantly surprised when the careers officer I spoke
to told me about the Disability Jobsite. I had internet access
at home and viewed the site with great interest. I registered
immediately, and used the resources the jobsite provided
to help me prepare a new CV."
Just three weeks after registering with the Disability Jobsite
and requesting the email jobs bulletin, Eliza was notified
about a job with the civil service that matched her skill-set
and experience.
"I'd never even thought about working for the civil service,
but the job that was advertised for a New Claims Advisor
at my local Job Centre required all the skills I had used
when I worked as a PA, plus I'd have the chance to train
in a new occupation and develop new skills. The civil service
have a very positive policy with regard to equal opportunities
and from the moment I rang for an application form I felt
comfortable and confident with the whole process."
By providing relevant links and resources, the Disability
Job site helped Eliza to refresh her interview skills and build
her confidence in advance of the interview she was offered.
Eliza was successful. She was offered a position to train as
a part-time Advisor at the job centre just a short journey
away from her home.
"I felt that everything at the Disability Jobsite was
geared towards me. It was so different from the regular jobsites
I'd looked at before it only works with employers who have
appropriate recruitment policies and initiatives. After the
accident I really didn't think I'd find the energy and ability
to look for a new career direction and the Jobsite gave me
the support and help I needed."
"Disabled people who can work shouldn't feel that they
can't. There is help and support out there it's just a matter
of having the motivation to find it. I don't feel that being
in a wheelchair presents any problems to my working anymore
and having my new job has made me feel like a real person
again."
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