Blog 9; Chap 6 & 14

The discussion of clients with special needs hits home for me for several reasons.  First, I have worked with individuals with intellectual disabilities, and I know there is often the question of what a person will do in the workforce once they graduate high school, and more importantly, what are they capable of doing.  A friend of mine works for the Arc of York County doing just that: finding job placements and following up with her special needs clients in their job placements.  Even though there are laws in place to help people with disabilities, there’s still a stigma associated with them; people assume that people with disabilities cannot perform a job as well as those without disabilities.  

Another population that is close to me is those who have displaced because of economic conditions.  Both of my parents worked for the same company for 25 and 42 years.  But when the company began downsizing due to the outsourcing of jobs overseas, both of them were laid off within a few years of each other.  My mom was suddenly faced with a midlife job change.  She worked in numerous jobs before finally setting in with the PA Department of Corrections Training Academy.  My dad however, was in a different position.  He was 62 years old at the time of the layoff.  He was faced with the decision between retiring early and finding another full time position.  He decided to retire, and has since picked up some part-time work since he was not financially ready to retire early.  In any case, both of these situations were and are still very hard on them and my family.  Because both are difficult situations, counselors and career counselor can be of great help to these populations.

Another population I would like to discuss is women, and more specifically the issues they face with balancing work and home life and maternity leave.  I know a few women who are currently facing these issues.  They want and need to work full-time.  But they also want to be around for their children.  One in particular is pregnant and facing maternity leave soon.  It can be frustrating depending on where a woman works.  Some companies have better policies than others.  But many times, pregnancy or maternity leave is unpaid; so many women end up going back to work after 6 weeks.  We are the only developed country that does not have better policies for its women, and even men for paternity leave.  

Chapter 14 would be extremely helpful to anyone pursuing a career in career counseling.  I was particularly unfamiliar with all of the services that can be offered by counselors.  Although I don’t plan on a job in career counseling, some of the information can be helpful to clinical counselors as well.