自闭症患者成为新好员工

    两党的国会领导人也都跳上了这条船。密西西比州共和党众议员格雷格•哈伯对此颇有感触，因为他的儿子患有X染色体易裂症（Fragile X Syndrome）。这种遗传缺陷能导致类似自闭症的症状。哈伯说：“被诊断患有自闭症的人往往非常聪明。经过适当的职业培训之后，他们可以拥有突出的工作业绩。”他于最近提交了一项涵盖三大内容的法案，也就是众所周知的TEAM法案（向卓越、成就和移动性迈进）。这项法案所包含的多项条文十分有利于帮助自闭症患者寻找全职工作。法案中的一条重要条款将改善州教育机构与州发育性残疾机构之间的协作。

    同样，患有自闭症的年轻人成为了最近修订的《劳动力投资法案》（Workforce Investment Act）的重点保护对象。这项法案的发起人是参议院卫生政策委员会主席、民主党参议员汤姆•哈金。例如，根据法案建议的行政长官学者计划（Commissioner's Scholars program），每个州将资助两名自闭症学生接受STEM专业研究生教育。哈金说：“我们不能让这些有才干的美国人游离在劳动力大军的边缘。”

    如今，人们发现，自闭症患者的数量要比之前预计的更多；疾病防治中心（CDC）最近的研究显示：2%的美国人都患有自闭症。尽管那些症状较为严重的患者在处理最基本的交际问题时都会感到十分困难，但那些高功能患者则并没有多少限制。但是患有自闭症的人时常会直抒己见；或者，他们可能对噪音或其他环境刺激异常敏感。结果，就算这种高功能组的患者顺利完成了高校学业，他们可能仍然难以找到一份既有意义、又与自身技能相匹配的工作。自闭症患者自我宣传网络（Autistic Self Advocacy Network，简称：ASAN）总裁阿里•尼曼指出，在持有本科或硕士学历的自闭症患者当中，找不到工作或大材小用的现象很普遍。阿里自己也是自闭症患者。他说：“我们的障碍来自于社会构架。我们应该在公司中享受和肢体障碍员工同样的待遇。”

    而这就是索科尔•索内所从事的工作。他所举办的为期四周的培训项目能帮助自闭症患者适应职场环境。尽管这些患者最初并不愿意与他人一起工作，但在索内的指导下，他们学会了如何以团队的方式处理问题。索内还为公司经理出谋划策，告诉他们如何帮助这些人适应工作环境。这些患有自闭症的人通常需要比常人稍微多一点的私人空间——例如，带门的办公室。当然，让那些自闭症员工在饮水机旁或在咖啡厅与同事畅谈闲聊不大现实。

    索内宣布第一批四位美国雇员已准备好今夏上岗时，这些雇员立刻受到了特拉华州卫生和社会服务部部长瑞塔•兰德格拉芙的热烈欢迎。她说：“我曾亲眼目睹过索内教授学员的过程。这是一个非常好的项目。”兰德格拉芙注意到，与自己相比，自闭症员工往往能更快地发现数据规律。兰德格拉芙补充说：“从雇主的角度来讲，这样做得投资很小，因此风险较低。但是，由此得到积极成果的可能性非常高。”（财富中文网）

    乔舒亚•肯德尔是《美国的偏执心理：成就一个国家的强迫性力量》一书的作者。

    译者：翔

    Congressional leaders from both sides of the aisle have also jumped on the bandwagon. Republican Representative Gregg Harper of Mississippi was sensitized to the issue by his son, who has Fragile X Syndrome, a genetic disorder that results in autistic-like symptoms. "People diagnosed with autism are often very, very bright, and with proper vocational assistance, they can be very productive," Harper says. He has recently introduced three pieces of legislation known as the TEAM Act (Transition toward Excellence, Achievement and Mobility), which contain various planks that would be particularly helpful to autistics seeking full-time employment. One key provision would improve the coordination between state educational agencies and state developmental disability agencies.

    Likewise, young people with autism figure prominently in the latest reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act put forward by Democratic Senator Tom Harkin, the chairman of the Senate committee on health policy. Under the proposed Commissioner's Scholars program, for example, every state would fund graduate education for two autistic students in STEM fields. "We can't afford to have these talented Americans sidelined on the margins of the workforce," says Harkin.

    Today, autism is understood to be much more common than previously thought; according to a recent CDC study, it affects 2% of Americans. While those on the more sever end of the spectrum experience difficulty handling eveb basic social situations, those on the high functioning end have far fewer limitations. But those with autism are sometimes inclined to blurt out exactly what is on their mind; alternatively, they can be overly sensitive to noise or other environmental stimuli. As a result, even when members of this high-functioning group succeed in higher education, they can still have trouble finding a meaningful job commensurate with their skills. Ari N'eeman, president of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN), who himself suffers from autism, notes that there is widespread unemployment and underemployment among those with ASDs who have college and graduate degrees. "We face barriers of social architecture," he says. "We need the same kind of accommodations that companies have made for those with physical disabilities."

    That's where Thorkil Sonne comes in. His four-week training program prepares autistics for the workplace; while these individuals are initially uncomfortable working with others, under Sonne's tutelage, they learn how to tackle problems as a team. Sonne also advises companies on what managers can do to ease the adjustment. Those with ASDs often need a little extra privacy—say, an office with a door. It is also unrealistic to expect those with autism to engage in chit-chat at the water-cooler or in the cafeteria.

    When Sonne pronounced his first four American employees ready for work this summer, Rita Landgraf, the secretary of Delaware's Department of Health and Social Services, welcomed them with open arms. "I have watched Sonne do the training," she says. "It's an excellent program." Landgraf has noticed that autistic workers can often pick up data trends quicker than she can. "From an employer's perspective," adds Landgraf, "my investment is minimal, so the risk is low. And the likelihood of a positive outcome is really high."

    Joshua Kendall is the author of America's Obsessives: The Compulsive Energy That Built a Nation.