Inclusion of persons with hearing impairment in formal private sector employment in Lira City

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate the inclusion of Persons with Hearing Impairment (PWHI) in Formal Private Sector Employment (FPSE) in Lira city, it was guided by the following objectives namely, the factors influencing the inclusion of PWHI in FPSE; the Reasonable Accommodation (RA) provided to PWHI in FPSE and limitations to provision of RA to employees with Hearing Impairment by formal private sector employers in Lira City. The study was guided by the social model theory of disability as a theoretical framework to understand how the inclusion of PWHI in FPSE was done. A phenomenological design of qualitative approach was adopted to inform the study. It helped the researcher to describe the lived experience of participants about the phenomenon. The target population for the study is people whose behavior was exhibited and studied by the researcher and this included PWHI and their employers who were selected purposefully as participants. Semi-structured interviews of open-ended questions were drafted to obtain information from participants and data collected were thematically analyzed to obtain meaning. The findings of the study showed that PWHI had difficulties in accessing jobs due to the lack of reasonable appropriate accommodations. The findings also indicated that employers were constrained to hire PWHI simply because of factors such as the high costs attached, inadequate knowledge about disability, and the appropriate RA. The study, therefore, recommends that sign language interpreters be hired by employers and paid. Extra time should be allowed to PWHI on arrival and before actual departure times so as to enable them maneuver their way early to avoid accidents.