tag:theconversation.com,2011:/global/topics/employers-issues-11019/articlesEmployers issues – The Conversation2017-01-11T19:53:09Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/704162017-01-11T19:53:09Z2017-01-11T19:53:09ZThere is no silver bullet to stop fraudsters<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/151355/original/image-20161222-30950-1te0r85.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">What does a fraudster look like?</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>A <a href="http://www.fraud-magazine.com/article.aspx?id=404">common stereotype</a> of fraudsters is that they are psychopaths. That fraudsters are considered manipulative, callous and remorseless is understandable, considering the consequences of fraud. </p>
<p>But these traits are not necessarily typical. Different people commit different types of fraud in different circumstances.</p>
<p>I reviewed decisions handed down in fraud trials and found that some fraudsters were completely remorseful, some were partly remorseful and others showed no remorse at all. Several fraudsters I interviewed described distress at violating their morals. One fraudster spoke of his regret at causing harm to his victims. </p>
<p>False stereotypes of who fraudsters are, and why they do what they do, could lead us to go after the wrong people.</p>
<h2>Stereotypes aren’t helping</h2>
<p>That the “typical” fraudster is a middle-aged male manager <a href="http://www.ub.unibas.ch/digi/a125/sachdok/2011/BAU_1_5663361.pdf">is another stereotype</a>. But this does not explain two of the largest frauds by individuals in Australian history, both committed by women – <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-02-10/accountant-jailed-for-27staggering27-2445m-fraud/3822932">Rajina Subramaniam</a> (A$45 million) and <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/business/clive-peeters-left-reeling-by-20m-sting-20090811-egz2.html">Sonya Causer</a> ($20 million). </p>
<p>Theories about fraud offer little help in predicting fraudsters. The dominant theory, <a href="http://www.hrzone.com/hr-glossary/what-is-the-fraud-triangle">The Fraud Triangle</a>, presents fraud as comprising motive, opportunity and a justification. </p>
<p>But it says nothing about who will have both a motive for fraud <em>and</em> decide to commit fraud.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152052/original/image-20170108-18659-1uk63h0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152052/original/image-20170108-18659-1uk63h0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152052/original/image-20170108-18659-1uk63h0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152052/original/image-20170108-18659-1uk63h0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152052/original/image-20170108-18659-1uk63h0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152052/original/image-20170108-18659-1uk63h0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=582&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152052/original/image-20170108-18659-1uk63h0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=582&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152052/original/image-20170108-18659-1uk63h0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=582&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Fraud Triangle and Diamond.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>An adaptation of The Fraud Triangle, <a href="http://www.jmu.edu/audit/wm_library/HyderFraud_Diamond.pdf">The Fraud Diamond</a>, adds an extra element – capability. The rationale is that some level of capability is needed to identify and exploit an opportunity for fraud. </p>
<p>But, as I will explain later, this also is too simplistic. </p>
<h2>How to spot a fraudster</h2>
<p>Opinions differ on whether fraudsters are different from the rest of us and, if so, what makes them different. Some fraudsters who offend to protect their employers are <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1464-0597.2006.00226.x/abstract">highly conscientious, irresponsible and lack regard for social norms</a>. In contrast, fraudsters who offend for their own benefit have been found to be <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1993.tb00875.x/abstract">narcissistic and lacking conscientiousness</a>.</p>
<p>Some fraudsters have gambling addictions, but not all addicts commit fraud. <a href="http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10611-008-9113-9">Some researchers</a> question whether gambling may sometimes be an excuse rather than a reason for fraud. </p>
<p>One of the fraudsters I interviewed described feeling desperate to provide for his family after some investments went bad. He said his shame about his crimes would prevent him from re-offending. Another said he would not re-offend because the risk of a criminal record could prevent him from providing for a family if he had one in future. </p>
<p>The varied results from all this research show the folly in picking just one metric to try to identify a fraudster. Organisations that screen using only criminal records, for example, may wind up hiring more risky, rather than less risky, employees.</p>
<p>Anyway, <a href="http://www.aic.gov.au/media_library/publications/cfi-pdf/cfi052.pdf">most employees</a> convicted of fraud do not have prior criminal records and may never re-offend.</p>
<p>Career fraudsters may not show up in a criminal records check. Some are smart or lucky enough not to be convicted, charged, or even caught. Previous employers may not realise they have been victimised. Employers may also decide not to involve the authorities to avoid bad publicity.</p>
<h2>So what do you do?</h2>
<p>So how do organisations predict which employees might commit fraud when there is <a href="http://www.researchonline.mq.edu.au/vital/access/manager/Repository/mq:18331;jsessionid=AE5EC64AE15A7442E25E37C0AE5CE252?exact=sm_creator%3A%22Fitness%2C+Julie%22&f0=sm_subject%3A%22integrity+tests%22">no reliable psychological test</a> to screen them? </p>
<p>Employers need to start by avoiding what psychologists call a fundamental attribution error – focusing on characteristics of individuals while ignoring the effect of environment on their behaviour. This means that to predict who is likely to commit fraud, we need to understand the effect of fraudsters’ environments.</p>
<p>I have created a model to explain how different factors, involving both the potential fraudster and their wider context, may influence different stages of fraud in different ways.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152054/original/image-20170108-18641-bznfwg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152054/original/image-20170108-18641-bznfwg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152054/original/image-20170108-18641-bznfwg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152054/original/image-20170108-18641-bznfwg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152054/original/image-20170108-18641-bznfwg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152054/original/image-20170108-18641-bznfwg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=559&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152054/original/image-20170108-18641-bznfwg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=559&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152054/original/image-20170108-18641-bznfwg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=559&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The person-process model.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As you can see, there is no one thing we can point to that leads to fraud. </p>
<p>To illustrate the model using the capability element of The Fraud Diamond, an incompetent manager may start falsifying financial statements to disguise his or her mistakes. A lack of capability is no barrier if organisations have poor accounting controls. A smart fraudster may steal more money over a longer period than a less capable fraudster. He or she may also avoid detection altogether.</p>
<p>There is no silver bullet to stop fraudsters. Predicting who is likely to commit which type of fraud under which circumstances would involve comparing a lot of people in the same circumstances who offend and
with those who don’t. But we don’t yet have the data to do this.</p>
<p>If employers want researchers to tell them which employees are likely to commit fraud, they need to help by reporting fraudsters to the authorities instead of sweeping their offences under the carpet. Researchers need to understand that someone who steals repeatedly may have more in common with a kleptomaniac than a serial killer.</p>
<p>In the meantime, we all need to consider that someone who steals to pay for medical treatment for a dying relative may have little in common with a billionaire Ponzi scheme operator.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/70416/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jennifer Wilson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>What are fraudsters really like? Are they all psychopaths? To fight fraud we need an accurate picture of who commits these offences.Jennifer Wilson, Combined PhD / Master of Organisational Psychology candidate, Macquarie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/643002016-08-26T05:25:53Z2016-08-26T05:25:53ZIs your employer watching you? Online profiling blurs the boundary of our public and private lives<p>A <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1748-8583.12121/full">new study</a> reveals employers are using online information about job applicants without their knowledge, to inform hiring decisions. Approximately 55% of organisations now have a policy about this type of practice, called profiling.</p>
<p>However, despite its <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/share/aboutus/pressreleasesdetail.aspx?id=pr519&sd=8/19/2009&ed=12/31/2009">increased use</a>, most employees are not comfortable with being profiled. Over 60% believe they have a right to a private online identity that employers should not access. But only 40% of those surveyed in the study reported they always manage their social media activities with their current employer in mind.</p>
<h2>What is profiling?</h2>
<p>Most of us have probably used an internet search engine to find information about someone. Perhaps we searched for information on a potential flatmate, a new colleague, or even a new boss. </p>
<p>With an internet search, we can easily learn important details about people before we meet them. What do they look like? What lifestyle choices have they made? What are their professional affiliations? </p>
<p>And perhaps more controversially, do they seem like the “right” kind of person to employ? This is known as profiling.</p>
<p>A <a href="http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/temple85&div=9&id=&page=">growing trend</a> among organisations, profiling is the collection of online information for the purpose of monitoring and evaluating current and future employees. However, the practice is not without controversy.</p>
<p><a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/doi/10.1111/ijmr.12061/epdf">Academics have questioned</a> the legitimacy of profiling. In particular, <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/doi/10.1111/ijmr.12061/epdf">some have objected</a> to the use of employees’ personal information, even though it is publicly available, because it contravenes an employees’ rights to a private identity. </p>
<p>To investigate this question from the perspective of employees, we conducted a <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1748-8583.12121/full">survey</a> of 2,000 employees across a range of occupational groups in Australia and the UK. We used this sample to determine the extent of profiling, the outcomes of profiling and the attitudes of employees to profiling. We also looked at whether profiling depended on industry and profession and how often organisations defined the parameters of profiling in their policies. </p>
<h2>The extent of profiling and attitudes to the practice</h2>
<p>Across nearly all of our analyses, we obtained very similar results for employees from Australia and the UK. The similar results suggest the ‘contested terrain’ of social media conduct at work may be highly consistent across national, legal and cultural boundaries. </p>
<p>When industries were compared, public administration and defence organisations were more likely than other organisations to have a policy on profiling. This is probably because these organisations have a greater awareness of risk and are closer to public policy concerns. More broadly, research suggests that social media policies are edging towards greater regulation of employees’ private lives.</p>
<p>Around 27% of participants in our study indicated they had witnessed or heard about an employer who had used online information to influence a hiring decision. When the outcome of the hiring decision was known, profiled job applicants were twice as likely to be unsuccessful than successful. When asked whether they had been profiled personally, most participants (more than 90%) either did not know or said that they hadn’t. </p>
<p>A small number of Australian and UK participants (3.3% and 6.7% respectively) reported that a potential employer had asked them to provide their username or password to a social media site. This is a very contentious practice, which is generally seen as stepping too far into the private lives of applicants. In some jurisdictions, such as Washington, this practice <a href="http://www.geekwire.com/2013/illegal-employers-social-media-passwords-washington/">has been banned</a>.</p>
<p>A large number of participants (60%) agreed that employees have a right to a private online identity that their employer should not access. Generally, participants with higher levels of education and those working in large organisations felt most strongly about privacy. </p>
<p>Somewhat paradoxically, 45% of participants agreed that employers have a right to search for personal online information about current employees. Participants were most likely to hold this belief when they were male, working in managerial positions and highly educated.</p>
<p>Most employees (70%) indicated they spent some time managing their online presence with their current and/or future employer in mind. Those most likely to manage their profiles were females, young people (between 17 to 34 years of age), ongoing staff and staff in professional and managerial positions.</p>
<p>It may be that these groups have greater awareness of what has been referred to as “<a href="http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=2132286">context collapse</a>”. This is where employees feel the need to manage their online profiles based on the knowledge that different audiences (employers, friends) may have access. They may also be more familiar with the technologies themselves or perform job roles that are characterised by blurred employment and personal spheres. </p>
<h2>A covert practice</h2>
<p>Our research indicated that 27% of employees had witnessed or heard about profiling. Less than 10% reported being profiled. </p>
<p>However, <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/opinionwatch/online-reputation-for-job-seekers-report-crosstab">other research</a> indicates the practice is much more widespread, with estimates that around 80% of hiring and recruiting specialists utilise profiling. This mismatch between practice and awareness suggests that profiling often occurs covertly. </p>
<p>Profiling is often used to screen unsuitable applicants. Slightly more than a quarter of those who use profiling indicate that they use online information to <a href="http://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1510&context=fclj">reject applicants</a>. </p>
<p>This is often on the basis of negative information, including inappropriate photographs, poor use of communication, drug use or associations with certain groups. If an applicant is refused a job on the grounds of what is referred to as a “protected ground” such as sex, race, religion or sexual orientation, this amounts to discrimination. </p>
<p>Although employees and prospective employees are in theory protected by discrimination law, claims are very rare. This is because it is difficult for a prospective employee to make an effective claim if the profiling was covert. </p>
<p>Applicants are rarely told they are profiled and rarely informed why they were screened. Our data demonstrated that participants usually only became aware they were profiled once they were successfully employed.</p>
<p>In addition to privacy concerns, a further question regarding the legitimacy of profiling relates to its validity and fairness as a selection tool. Online information may be <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0007681310000625">not be correct</a>, or it may be available for some job applicants but not others. In these circumstances, the selection process cannot be standardised across all people applying for the position. </p>
<h2>Social media is reshaping the public-private boundary</h2>
<p>The issue of social media conduct at work is increasingly controversial. Profiling is one of the ways in which social media are blurring the boundaries between private and public life. </p>
<p>Although online communications are in some ways similar to those occurring offline, exchanges on social media are preserved and can be shared, with or without the permission of the person who created them. This includes being shared with employers. </p>
<p>Overall, there is a need for wider conversations about the relevance and reach of profiling. Transparency about when and how employers use profiling seems like a reasonable expectation.</p>
<p>This is especially the case when we consider that policies about the social media conduct of employees, such as posting <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/virgin-atlantic-sacks-13-staff-for-calling-its-flyers-chavs-982192.html">negative comments online</a> or private online activities during work time, are becoming increasingly prescriptive. The challenge is to balance employer requirements for selecting productive workers with ensuring safe and private online spaces for employees.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/64300/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paula McDonald receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter O'Connor does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Employers are increasingly using potential employees’ social media accounts to determine their suitability for jobs. A new study finds employees are uncomfortable with this but accept the practice.Peter O'Connor, Senior Lecturer, Business and Management, Queensland University of TechnologyPaula McDonald, Professor of Work and Organisation, ARC Future Fellow, Queensland University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/306352014-08-19T14:10:07Z2014-08-19T14:10:07ZNew generation is happy for employers to monitor them on social media<p>Will employers in the future watch what their staff get up to on social media? Allowing bosses or would-be employers a snoop around social media pages is a <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/debateroom/archives/2010/12/employers_get_outta_my_facebook.html">growing trend</a> in the US, and now a new report from PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Said Business School suggests it may well become the norm.</p>
<p>Drawing on a global survey of 10,000 workers and 500 human resources staff, the <a href="http://pwc.blogs.com/files/future-of-work-report-1.pdf">report</a> predicts that employers’ monitoring of workers’ lives on social media will <a href="http://pwc.blogs.com/northern-ireland/2014/08/young-workers-would-trade-social-media-privacy-for-job-security.html">increase</a> as they “strive to understand what motivates their workforce, why people might move jobs and to improve employee wellbeing”. </p>
<p>More than a third of the young workers surveyed said they were happy for their employer to monitor their status updates and tweets in return for greater job security. </p>
<h2>Let the right one in</h2>
<p>The anticipated thirst of corporations and employers of all sizes for the personal data of their employees is arguably one of the most troubling aspects of the findings, matched only by the apparent willingness of a significant proportion of young people to acquiesce.</p>
<p>The situation is reminiscent of the debate ignited in 2012 over the growing pressure felt by job applicants to <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/facebook/9155368/Companies-asking-for-Facebook-passwords-for-future-employees.html">hand over their social media passwords to prospective employers</a>. Such investigative subtlety would have no doubt made <a href="http://www.thrillingdetective.com/marlowe.html">Philip Marlowe</a> wince (“I don’t mind if you don’t like my manners. I don’t like ‘em myself – they’re pretty bad.”). David Maass of the Electronic Frontier Foundation) outlined this year why he believes such a practice constitutes a flagrant violation of personal privacy, <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/01/05/facebook-passwords-employers/4327739/">saying</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>When an employer asks for access to [applicants’] social media, it’s essentially the same as if an employer asked for full access to their house … poking through their mail, looking in their drawers, sitting in on conversations at the dinner table.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>However, there appears to be an important fallacy underlying the notion that providing employers with full access to personal data on social media will somehow boost employability. Try the following for yourself: take a moment to think about the long and winding trails of personal data that weave together to form the digital tapestry that you and others create for yourself online. Now, imagine the implications that might arise from allowing your employer to surreptitiously unpick each of these strands in isolation, with little or no knowledge of the context in which they occured. </p>
<p>Imagine your employer looking over that shared <a href="http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/09/16/two-toronto-firefighters-terminated-over-unacceptable-sexist-tweets-third-reportedly-fired-over-facebook-post/?__federated=1">quote from your favourite television show</a>, the photo of you enjoying a refreshing though otherwise <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2115927/How-Facebook-cost-job-One-applicants-rejected-bosses-check-profiles-social-media-sites.html">unremarkable pint of beer on your summer vacation</a>, or finding that <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/social-media/9089826/Tweeting-about-a-bad-day-could-lose-you-your-job.html">oblique reference you made about a difficult day at the office</a> last year. Each of them relatively innocuous and unexceptional with respect to your intended audience, yet potentially career-defining in the eyes of your employer.</p>
<h2>Generation Y-not?</h2>
<p>The question we must ask ourselves is, why would young employees be so willing to relinquish their privacy social media lives in exchange for greater job security? It might be that millennials simply care little for matters of privacy. Yet the recent upsurge in the popularity of apps such as <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2722816/Snapchat-popular-Twitter-Number-young-people-using-app-DOUBLED-year.html">Snapchat</a> and <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/aug/05/1">WhatsApp</a> seems to run counter to this explanation, with young people seemingly gravitating towards more ephemeral and private means of communicating among their peers, away from the unwanted gaze of older adults. In my own research studying young adults’ use of social media, most report using tight privacy settings on Facebook and engaging in strict and often complex approaches to setting personal and professional boundaries on the site as they make the transition from student to early career employee.</p>
<p>On the other hand, a recent <a href="http://www.pewinternet.org/2010/02/03/social-media-and-young-adults/">Pew Internet survey</a> of teens using social media indicated that while 60% reported making their Facebook profiles private and taking steps to manage to their online reputation, this still leaves a sizable proportion with publicly accessible profiles. </p>
<p>In a digital society where the prevalence of <a href="http://www.mbabizmag.com/2014/05/30/survey-employers-social-media-recruiting-tool/">social recruiting continues to rise</a> and media outlets increasingly succumb to the low-hanging allure of social media <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2727724/Schoolgirl-16-feared-Scotland-s-youngest-female-party-drug-victim-taking-Ecstasy-tablet-house-party.html">to substantiate rumours and infer the psychological states of their subjects</a>, perhaps we are faced with the possibility that some young adults are starting to develop a form of <a href="http://psychology.about.com/od/lindex/f/earned-helplessness.htm">learned helplessness</a> that results from observing the relative futility of using social media privacy settings to successfully keep employers at bay. </p>
<p>It is difficult to accurately gauge what kind of impact growing up in a world that is so digitally oriented and yet suffused with commercial and governmental surveillance will have on the workforce of tomorrow. But PwC’s report offers the alarming insight that for some young people, the loss of privacy is a price worth paying for the prospect of employability. With the assertion that giving up one would necessarily lead to the other being so dubious in the first place, it’s high time we made the case that relinquishing one’s <a href="https://www.liberty-human-rights.org.uk/human-rights/what-are-human-rights/human-rights-act/article-8-right-private-and-family-life">right to a personal and private life</a> should not be part of a future that the most recent digital generation strives for.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/30635/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chris James Carter is supported by the Horizon Doctoral Training Centre at the University of Nottingham (RCUK Grant No. EP/G037574/1) and his work was part funded by the RCUK’s Horizon Digital Economy Research Hub grant, EP/G065802/1.
</span></em></p>Will employers in the future watch what their staff get up to on social media? Allowing bosses or would-be employers a snoop around social media pages is a growing trend in the US, and now a new report…Chris James Carter, PhD Candidate, University of NottinghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/281252014-06-18T13:16:56Z2014-06-18T13:16:56ZEmployers must become aware of dementia in the workplace<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/51535/original/92pdkvzm-1403096124.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">With a bit of help sufferers can remain effective at work.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/orangebrompton/3756473758/">Helen ST</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?documentID=412">Recent figures suggest</a> there are around 800,000 people in the UK with dementia. People usually associate the condition with later life, but around 17,000 of people with the condition are under the age of 65. Coupled with recent changes to the state pension age and the abolition of the default retirement age, it looks likely that there will be larger numbers of people with dementia in employment in the coming years. </p>
<p>The UK government’s <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/employing-disabled-people-and-people-with-health-conditions/employing-disabled-people-and-people-with-health-conditions">recent focus</a> on encouraging employers to support people with disabilities to find and stay in work in line with the provisions of the <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/contents">Equality Act 2010</a> has been accompanied by a shift in attitudes towards disability and employment. This relates directly to dementia, which is listed as a disability within the terms of the Act. Nevertheless the focus is very much on ability rather than disability and supporting people to retain employment.</p>
<h2>Our research</h2>
<p>At the University of the West of Scotland, we have been carrying out research into the work-related experiences of people who have been diagnosed with dementia. Our study has focused on the perspectives of individuals, family, work colleagues, managers and employers to better understand the challenges and what can and should be done to help. It will be next August before we wrap up, but we have been struck in our first few months’ research by the range of experiences that employees with dementia have had. </p>
<p>The gradual onset of the illness means that there may be subtle changes in a person’s behaviour and performance in the workplace which in the first instance may not be recognised as dementia. These may include memory problems, personality changes; and difficulty learning new materials and communicating. The experience of dementia is unique, and not all people will experience the typical memory problems as an initial symptom. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/51379/original/h8kpj38z-1403014326.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/51379/original/h8kpj38z-1403014326.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/51379/original/h8kpj38z-1403014326.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51379/original/h8kpj38z-1403014326.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51379/original/h8kpj38z-1403014326.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51379/original/h8kpj38z-1403014326.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51379/original/h8kpj38z-1403014326.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51379/original/h8kpj38z-1403014326.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Everyone experiences dementia differently.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-181913870/stock-photo-close-up-of-a-senior-adult-with-tablets.html?src=_C9HvhyLN7n9IsnimELMOg-3-90">Miriam Doerr</a></span>
</figcaption>
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<p>From an employers’ perspective it is important that these initial symptoms are identified and appropriate support offered to the employee. This is not suggesting that employers have to diagnose dementia; but it is helpful if they are aware of the possibility and able to appropriately address any changes in behaviour and offer support and signposting for medical advice. </p>
<p>Among the many advantages in getting an early diagnosis is the prospect of being able to continue in employment. Having said that, diagnosis can still take a long time. People can struggle at work for months or years, often leaving their jobs before they are diagnosed. If the employer is aware, it can help to improve this process and allow them to implement informed adjustments for the person during the interim period.</p>
<h2>Reasonable adjustments</h2>
<p>Once someone has been diagnosed with the condition, the Equality Act 2010 stipulates that the employer should carry out an assessment and put reasonable adjustments in place to help the employee to keep working there wherever possible. They should carry out an assessment based on the employee’s job description and take a view on how much the employee can still carry out and which parts will need extra support. </p>
<p>The types of adjustments will vary greatly depending on the person’s role and how far their dementia has progressed. It can be simple things like using a diary or a digital recorder for meetings, changing shift patterns or reducing hours. It might mean an informal arrangement such as having a “work buddy”. In other instances, it will mean coming up with an alternative role for the person within the workplace. Whatever the case, it is important that colleagues are aware that the person has been diagnosed. </p>
<p>It is not always possible to continue working once early-stage dementia sets in. Some roles demand more precision, perhaps for health and safety reasons, than the diagnosed person retains. All the same, people often can, and do, continue where it is viable. Among our case studies, we have a caretaker and a telephone engineer who have both worked for a number of years after being diagnosed. We also have a joiner who didn’t work for six years but has recently started working again as a handyman. </p>
<p>There are a number of outside agencies where employers can access support. These include <a href="https://www.gov.uk/contact-jobcentre-plus">Jobcentre Plus</a>, which will provide information relating to relevant schemes including Access to Work, and a range of vocational rehabilitation providers. The <a href="http://alzheimers.org.uk/?gclid=CIebp4n0gL8CFfMgtAodBAYABQ">Alzheimer’s Society</a> and <a href="http://www.alzscot.org/">Alzheimer Scotland</a> can also provide dementia-specific information and training.</p>
<h2>Awareness is key</h2>
<p>Awareness training sessions have been found to be vital in helping people to continue employment after diagnosis, since they make colleagues and line managers aware of the symptoms and the difficulties that people with dementia may face. Dementia awareness sessions in workplaces where there are no employees with dementia are also becoming common.
Even though our research is far from complete, we have so far found seen a wide variety of responses from employers. This has ranged from employers going out of their way to help the person continue, to those who have immediately made the employee redundant. In all cases, the indications are that workplaces who are well aware of the issues are the most adept at handling them. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/51383/original/cshdfpm5-1403014919.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/51383/original/cshdfpm5-1403014919.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/51383/original/cshdfpm5-1403014919.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51383/original/cshdfpm5-1403014919.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51383/original/cshdfpm5-1403014919.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51383/original/cshdfpm5-1403014919.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=672&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51383/original/cshdfpm5-1403014919.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=672&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/51383/original/cshdfpm5-1403014919.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=672&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Some workplaces are better at helping employees than others.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/haikumania/6819145502/in/photolist-bozUob-5wtskh-boW5yu-6AVY5i-4RXgtT-acz6yS-4omD8i-9QP1fy-bBuPYi-4HGaAL-agRqY4-yRZpM-dfnyRJ-6i27ch-7uHER9-axy5qj-dZyAJc-tduFB-wty2D-8nbxXW-9QNYXQ-9QP1SG-CVNjt-fCP8wb-wtCQh-9QL928-9QLa1H-9QL9EZ-9QP1sy-6KykWZ-bm5Py9-wtx5V-9QL8F2-9QL9HF-9QLaiZ-9QP1Hw-556oDZ-9QNZkf-9QP1yY-9QNZn9-C2A7Z-fJMhck-8fpuSQ-ac1qMi-DV9J6-4Ak5o-wtAX2-bW4waD-ahp9Cx-wFYV5/">Paul Conneally</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
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<p>The university recently held dementia awareness sessions across all four of its campuses as part of its commitment to become the first dementia-friendly university in Scotland. The action plan involves training managers, lecturers and support staff; updating human resources and occupational health policy and changing each campus to create a welcoming, accessible and enabling environment for people with dementia. </p>
<p>More generally, it is important that we address the issues around dementia in the workplace to increase the chances of these people staying in employment. The more that employers and employees are aware of the possibility and the signs of dementia, the more it will support people with the condition in future. </p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/28125/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Louise Ritchie receives funding from the Alzheimer's Society</span></em></p>Recent figures suggest there are around 800,000 people in the UK with dementia. People usually associate the condition with later life, but around 17,000 of people with the condition are under the age…Louise Ritchie, Research Fellow, Institute of Older Persons' Health and Wellbeing, University of the West of ScotlandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.