Summayah

‘You are doing me an injustice … and I have to fight for myself as a disabled person. Because if I’m not going to fight for me who’s going to fight for me?’

About 20 years ago, Summayah had a serious car accident in the country where she was born. Her right arm was paralysed. She told the Royal Commission she faced challenges learning to live with reduced motor-function, but she quickly adapted and lives independently without assistance.

After the accident, Summayah worked as a social worker with children. She held a full manual drivers licence and drove every day as part of her job. She said her paralysis was ‘never an obstacle’ in her life or career.

A few years ago, an Australian government department sponsored Summayah to work in Australia. She told them her right arm was paralysed and signed a declaration of a pre-existing condition. She said no-one from the department mentioned or discussed her physical impairment again.

When Summayah started work, she informed the team leader about her arm. ‘Ever since then everything tumbled around me.’ Management insisted on weekly meetings to discuss her ability to perform her duties. Summayah requested a support person but management refused saying the meetings were ‘informal’. No minutes were taken.

Summayah told them she drove government vehicles in her home country in all her roles without issue. Her home country’s licence is recognised in Australia and has no restrictions. She had successfully applied to lease a car.

Management weren’t convinced and made her drive them to the transport department ‘to personally tell these people I am disabled’. It was a ‘heartbreaking experience’ and she felt ‘shattered’ and ‘humiliated’. Transport staff asked to see Summayah’s licence, noted there were no restrictions and confirmed she could drive in Australia.

Summayah engaged a lawyer and demanded a formal meeting. At the meeting, in addition to raising concerns about her ability to drive, management questioned her ability to safely perform her duties with respect to children. They said she wouldn’t be able to pick up a baby or fasten them in car seats. They also doubted she could handle difficult situations without assistance, such as needing to remove a child. She said she has never had an issue performing these duties when working in the same role in her home country. Furthermore, Summayah reminded them, she would not be doing the role alone because the policy is to conduct client visits in pairs.

Management demanded a department-appointed physician medically assess Summayah. The preliminary report found she was ‘unfit to perform the inherent requirements of the role’. She said this was ‘highly distressing’. She felt like the department wanted her to fail, and she had been discriminated against on the basis of her disability.

‘I suffered a nervous breakdown as a result of the findings, with my self-worth and image devastated,’ Summayah said. ‘There was never any support for me while I was fighting this battle.’

The department transferred Summayah to a different office to work in an office-based role. They said they would assess her capacity in the role, and if they decided she could not manage the workload, she would be dismissed. Summayah felt enormous stress and pressure because her continued employment is a condition of her visa.

A few months later, the department told Summayah her contract would not be renewed. Also, they said they would not provide a recommendation letter to apply for permanent residency because she was in a contract position. Summayah’s colleagues, who were sponsored by the department at the same time, were given recommendation letters.

‘It was just a horrible experience … I couldn’t make peace with the injustice.’