Tracey
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
Tracey is in her 60s and has a physical disability that prevents her from standing and walking for long periods.
Several years ago she applied for a job as a support worker with a disability service provider.
‘When I first got the job with [the provider] I was so excited because I thought I had the support, the needs, the understanding of my disability,’ Tracey told the Royal Commission. ‘For the first [few] years, may I say, I did. I had a wonderful time. Then I put my hand up and I asked for help for something, and it all just went down from there.’
Her employer moved to a new building that had no lift or accessible parking.
‘Terrible disabled access. It’s amazing how many buildings that disability services are in that have no disability parking … I don’t know how these companies can get away with it.’
Tracey asked for ‘things that had already been part of [her] daily working to be put back in place’.
‘I was called a whinger. I was called a troublemaker. I was called all these things. Not, “We should look at all these and see what we can do about that because that’s not really fair.”’
Tracey said she felt ‘humiliated and embarrassed’. When she began to self-harm, she admitted herself to hospital with anxiety and depression.
‘I took this out on myself because I thought I was asking too much and being a problem to other people, and I should never have been made to feel that way.’
Tracey said the service provider ‘should know better’ because it supported people living with mental illness.
‘I’m now struggling to get back into the workforce with my disabilities and now the mental health diagnosis.’
Tracey told the Royal Commission a government agency recently interviewed her for a job.
‘They asked the question – how do I think my disability will affect my job? If I thought my disability was going to affect that job, I wouldn’t have applied for it. They didn’t ask able-bodied people how their problems will affect their job … They just tick off boxes.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.