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"A workplace with adequate support can facilitate employees with autism to perform well in their jobs."

Located at Tung Chung, Lantau Island, the Hong Chi Shiu Pong Morninghope School is Hong Kong's first special school tailored for students with mild, moderate and severe grade of intellectual disabilities. Five Hong Chi graduates have been recruited as school staff since the school started operation in early 2020. Two of them are responsible for school cleaning, while two of the graduates work as teaching assistants, and the other one has been hired as an IT assistant.

Create a Win-win Situation
Employing Hong Chi graduates can help fill the jobs in the school, whilst providing more opportunities for graduates with autism to showcase their working abilities. This brings mutual gains to both sides. "Graduates with autism are very good at doing repetitive work that may seem boring and insipid to other people. The predictable, repetitive routines make them feel calm and less anxious, they can thereby fully concentrate on their work," said Principal Shek of Hong Chi Shiu Pong Morninghope School. "One of our graduates works in a restaurant and her job is to set dining tables. She excelled in handling repetitive tasks. Not only does she place each set of tableware correctly but also neatly places every item at equal distances. Her colleagues are amazed by her high accuracy and efficiency," Principal Shek continued.

Build Communication Bridges

Although graduates with autism are fully capable of working and some are equipped with unique skill sets that provide value to companies, their habits of sticking to routines make it difficult for them to adapt to any unexpected changes in workplaces. In order to help school staff in adapting to the new work changes, some coordination has to be made. Apart from giving detailed explanations of work changes, social workers will be engaged to provide assistance for them. "People with autism have weak verbal communication skills. Once they encounter trouble expressing their thoughts and feelings, they will suppress motions and bottle up their feelings which can negatively affect their work performance. The timely support given by social workers will definitely help us a great deal." Principal Shek reiterated that each Hong Chi graduate who has newly joined the staff team must have a social worker follow up with their cases. Also, social workers of Hong Chi Job Training and Employment Service play an important role as the communication bridges in coordinating with the school and autistic employees. "It would be more appropriate to invite a third party to serve as mediator to follow up on our autistic employees' performances and build a positive relationship between employer and employee," said Principal Shek.

Because of their deficiency in social skills, employees with autism face a different degree of difficulty in the workplace. "They have trouble making eye contact while they are talking to people. People may find them rude. A simple working environment where they don't need to have frequent interaction with people is suitable for them to concentrate on their work. Like one of our hostel staff with autism, whose job it is to fold and pack students' laundry every day. He manages his work very well without any assistance provided. He works fast and completes his job at a high standard."

Getting Job Done Perfectly
Parents are generally very supportive of their children with autism getting a job in school because the campus is more autism-friendly, and they feel at ease when their children work in a familiar environment. Principal Shek pointed out that the school will not lower the recruitment standard for Hong Chi graduates. "All of the full-time staff has to fulfill our recruitment requirements with related job skills and abilities, even Hong Chi graduates are no exception. We believe that people with autism deserve to have a platform to showcase their unique strengths and talents. Once we have provided the necessary workplace facilities for employees with autism, we expect them to do their jobs well."

"We are providing job opportunities and support to graduates with autism. Therefore, we will not lower our expectations of their job performances, otherwise, it will be unfair to our current team of staff. All our staff has to be equipped with related work skills and their capability always comes first in job recruitments. We hope that mainstream schools and hostels can offer more job opportunities for graduates with autism, as it not only alleviates the shortage of manpower, but also assists them to integrate into society," said Principal Shek.

It has always been our firm belief that people with intellectual disabilities possess unique potential and talent. We shall create different platforms and opportunities for our students to develop their potential to the fullest. We sincerely seek generous support from the general public to assist them in integrating into society and leading fulfilling lives.