Workplace personal assistance services: Its present and its future

Workplace personal assistance services (Workplace PAS) include task-related assistance at work, such as readers, interpreters, help with lifting or reaching, re-assignment of non-essential duties to co-workers, and other help related to performing work tasks and may include personal care-related assistance such as helping someone with eating, drinking, or getting to the restroom while at work.

This session will summarize the results of interviews with 36 employers, 19 employment services professionals, and 58 employed people with disabilities about use of workplace PAS, as well as extensive review of PAS policies and other literature. Findings to be presented include the history of workplace PAS, how it functions in the workplace today, and directions for the future. Results include data on who pays for workplace PAS, how much it costs, how it is arranged, and findings on unpaid versus paid PAS. Looking to the future, the presentation summarizes what employers, employment services professionals and employed people with disabilities believe is necessary for a successful workplace PAS, and what are promising practices for the future.