Applying, interviewing and getting a first part-time job is big step for any teenager. When your teenager has autism, it seems even bigger and is a very important step toward independence. Yet, having a first job means a lot of social and other learning. Some employers are well equipped to train and work with autistic teenagers while others may not be. So would it be helpful to have your autistic teenager work with a job coach for their first part-time job?
Our experience
Our son J began working part-time on the weekends at a local retailer last December. In fact, he has been on the job for a little over six months and received his first raise recently 😊
I will be honest and say I didn’t really know where to begin to help him find his first job. Luckily, representatives from Vocational Rehabilitation had been at a disability fair at my company a couple of years ago. I had talked to them. They shared about their employment placement and job coaching program. I’m glad I held onto the information. It came in handy when J was ready to find his first job!
In March 2021, I reached out to our local Vocational Rehabilitation office (referred by many as simply Voc Rehab). They scheduled an intake interview with J and me. He was deemed eligible for their employment program. We went onto be assigned a representative and chose an agency to provide job coaching for J.
I found the discovery process to be the most helpful for J (and me!). His job coach took him through several job tests and discussed the type of jobs he may want to work in his first role. J settled on stocking, so they identified some local retailers near us that were hiring. They made the rounds and settled on one to apply for a backroom associate position. J even had to create a resume. I didn’t know they are now required for many retail jobs because the applications are almost all online.
His coach and I prepped J for his interview, which he nailed and got the job offer. Then his coach went to work with J for the first several weeks of his job. He helped him learn the job itself and the processes of the store where he worked.
Why it’s important for autistic teenagers to work during high school
I read somewhere that having a job during their high school years is one of the best indicators of whether an autistic teenager will be employable after graduation.
The employment statistics for autistic adults are concerning and depressing to me as a parent. The Autism Society’s website cites the following statistics:
- “More than 66% of young adults on the Autism spectrum are unemployed and are not engaged in higher education 2 years after exiting high school.”
- “Nearly 42% of young adults who experience Autism never worked for pay during their early 20s.”
- “The unemployment rate for people with disabilities who are ready and willing to work is typically twice that of the general non-disabled working population.”
Encouraging your autistic teenager to obtain job experience while they are still in high school is important. It will help them gaining valuable employable skills to transition to work and/or post-secondary education after high school.
Pros of using a job coach
So what are the pros to using a job coach to help your autistic teenager with their first part-time job? Here are the ones I noted from our experience:
- Having a job coach take our son through the discovery period was really helpful. He was knowledgeable about first-time job roles and provided J with a lot of good information to help him narrow down the options.
- Knowing the local employers and what jobs were available was really useful. If I had tried to help J on my own, I wouldn’t have had this knowledge. J’s employer is a really good fit.
- Understanding the current job application process for retail jobs was a plus. I had no idea J would need a resume at this age! I didn’t create my first resume until I was in college. The retail employment world has changed so much since I worked my first retail job right after high school.
- Having on-the-job assistance with a coach was key to help J understand not only how to do his job (his supervisor is great and mostly helped with that!) but also figuring out all the processes like logging into the system for his hours, requesting time off and other procedures.
- Receiving on-the-job coaching for emotional and social skills was a pro as well.
Cons of using a job coach
So what are the downsides of using a job coach? While J’s coach was a really nice guy, he wasn’t the most organized person and had some issues of his own. We navigated those during this time period. From our experience, here are some of the cons to using a job coach:
- The discovery period took way longer than I thought it would. The Vocational Rehabilitation representative I worked with didn’t provide the full timeline to me, so I didn’t realize it could take about six months before J was starting a job. I reached out to them in March, thinking by early summer he should have a job. He didn’t start his job until December!
- The employment agency we worked with was understaffed with job coaches, so J was meeting with his every other Friday after school. That was difficult because he only saw him twice a month, which slowed the process down. We basically missed all of July because we were on vacation the week that J was supposed to meet with his coach, and then there was a scheduling conflict for his coach for the next one. Be sure to inquire at the agency what their ratio is for job coaches and clients and ask up front how often the coach can meet with your teen.
- If your coach isn’t working well for your teen, contact their supervisor and ask for a new coach sooner rather than later. We ended up having to ask for a new coach for J, but it took me too long to reach out to the supervisor. The learning for me was that I should have spoken up much sooner. The supervisor himself ended up going to work with J one or two times, and luckily it was during the point when they were weaning J off of on-the-job coaching.
Application process for Vocational Rehabilitation
For his first job, I am glad we went through Vocational Rehabilitation and the job coaching program for J. The pros outweighed the cons for him.
If you are interested in looking into Vocational Rehabilitation, each state has local offices. You can find your local office and reach out to them about employment services for your autistic teen.
Your teen will go through an initial interview through an intake process to determine interest and eligibility. Then you will be assigned a VR representative to work through logistics and the process to choose a local agency that will provide the job coaching services. Your representative also will be there to answer questions and help you deal with any issues that may arise with the agency.
If your child is not deemed eligible by VR, many of the agencies still offer services to those who need help. You will have to pay out-of-pocket for the services, but it may be worth it to help your autistic teenager find and begin their first part-time job.
If you live outside of the United States, I would recommend doing some research to see if you have local job coaching options.
Did you hire a job coach for your autistic teenager for their first and/or subsequent jobs? Any helpful tips you can provide? If so, leave a comment so that we can share and encourage one another along this journey!
