It’s difficult to find a job, and that can be even more true for people with disabilities (PWD).
Hopefully, more and more businesses will take a cue from this ice cream chain in the Philippines that’s hiring people who are hard of hearing almost exclusively.
On Sunday, Twitter user Anissa Villaverde (@khalneessi) tweeted a photo of Elait, the ice cream stand where her cousin works.
“It’s rare to find workplaces that provide opportunities for non-hearing people, but here, they’re even empowered,” she wrote in a mix of Filipino and English.
https://twitter.com/khalneessi/status/1010794605015543808
“They have an all-deaf staff and delicious ice cream rolls (best would be the Mango Strawberry Cheescake),” she added.
Villaverde told Coconuts Manila via direct message on Twitter how her cousin, Yan Torio, had the chance to work at the Ayala The 30th mall branch in Pasig City.
“The fact that their staff is all-deaf and no hearing person needed to assist them in order to function seemed like the business really trusted their workers,” she said.
The artisanal rolled ice cream concept store has a poster of basic sign language which could help customers thank the employees as staff members whip up what they order from the menu.
“Plus, it’s been a while since we’ve seen our cousin really happy with work. She’s been having trouble getting a job for a long while now given her disability, we’re glad she was given this opportunity,” Villaverde added.
Netizens left heartwarming comments on the Twitter thread:
Twitter user @litrallyhowell wrote how he was excited to use what he learned from sign-language lessons: “I’m so excited. I really want to use our sign lessons and it’d be so cool to be able to talk to those who are deaf and see them smile.”
IM SO EXCITED I REALLY WANNA USE OUR SIGN LESSONS HHH AND ITD BE SO COOL TO BE ABLE TO TALK TO THOSE WHO ARE DEAF AND SEE THEM SMILE AAAA
— alex ⚞ • ⚟ (@litrallyhowell) June 24, 2018
“I’ve always wondered why I haven’t seen food service employ deaf, hearing-impaired [persons] because orders for cooks are always written down,” wrote Twitter user @TJolteonMaster. “Nice to see someone had the same ideas I’ve had.”
Nice to see someone had the same ideas I've had. ☺
— @maritjolteonmaster.bsky.social (@TJolteonMaster) June 25, 2018
Twitter user @tkhs_reina recounted her experience with the staff: “Elait is one of my fave store[s]! The employees I’ve encountered so far are all friendly and nice people.”
https://twitter.com/tkhs_reina/status/1011131312449523717
Elait is a play on words. Au lait is French for milk, and elated means to make someone happy, which essentially, is what they aim to give customers: milk and happiness.
The ice cream store is owned by Francis Reyes, CEO of the Caravan Food Group, Inc. He told Coconuts Manila through a message on Facebook that the store opened its first branch in Century City in Makati City in April 2017.
Reyes added how their employees were empowered through an orientation.
“Our team members are empowered through proper training on how to handle the shops by themselves. They gain confidence along the way knowing that they’re truly capable individuals. It also helps that they do not feel alone since they work with many other members of the deaf community.”
“We have sign language guides posted all over our shop, and our ordering system does not require one to speak. You just have to fill out your order form and give it to them,” Reyes said.
For him, the Philippines has a long way to go to become a more inclusive country.
“There’s still a lot more our country can do for members of the PWD community,” he said. “They need way more opportunities and more access to training and education.”
According to Reyes, Overdoughs, another one of Caravan Food Group, Inc.’s concept stores, also has an employee with autism and will have part-timers with Down’s syndrome.
In a recent study by the UP Center for Local and Regional Governance (UP CLRG), only 60 percent of local government units have a Persons with Disability Office (PDAO).
“The presence of a PDAO office [in a local government unit] lowers the chances of PWDs having limited access to various services, such as health, employment, rehabilitation, assistive devices, education, social welfare and disaster management,” Dr. Erwin Alampay, an associate professor of public administration from the University of the Philippines National Center for Public Administration and Governance (UP NCPAG) said in a press conference last week.
“We have to educate our local governments because the PWDs are the most vulnerable to poverty and lack of access to basic needs,” Alampay added.
