Kiyota.
I'm Chelsea Daniels and this is the Front Page, a daily podcast presented by the New Zealand Herald. There are huge inequities facing at least one hundred and eighty three thousand New Zealanders and not much as being done about it. New data from Blind, Low Vision and Z reveals how blind, deaf, blind and low vision New Zealanders face not only higher costs, but also the emotional strain of barriers most kiwis never encounter.
Stats and Z figures show that fifty eight percent of disabled New Zealanders earn thirty thousand dollars or less a year, compared with thirty three.
Percent of non disabled people.
So what does government need to do to make sure this community doesn't keep falling through the cracks? Today on the front Age, Blind, Low Vision and Z Community and Inclusion General Manager Dan Shepherd is with us to speak about his own lived experience and.
How we might be able to help.
So, Dan, everyone is struggling with the cost of living crisis at the moment, But how are these financial pressures compounded for those who are blind, deaf, blind or low vision.
Yeah, I think in terms of the cost of being blind deaf, blind, or low vision. There there is more than just the financial cost of being a disabled person. There is the emotional cost, the cost on your time, the cost on your energy. When the barriers are in front of you, when you just want to make choices to live your life.
What are some of those barriers?
Can you give me an example of perhaps something that we might take for granted.
Yeah, absolutely, Well, Look, I like to use the example of something as simple and every day is getting your groceries for somebody who's blind or somebody who's low vision like me, it takes time to prepare yourself for a trip to the supermarket. I've got to get Isra my guide dog ready, I need to book my taxi. I need to count count on the fact that the taxi that comes to pick us up is going to want him in their car and not drive away like some
ubers or taxis can do. Then you get to the supermarket, and as somebody with low vision, you're going to need some support to find the things you need. So you're counting on awareness and support from others to get your groceries. And then you've got to do all the things, and that's process and reverse to.
Get home gosh, and I see that blind low vision and Z has reported that clients are skipping GP appointments because travel is becoming unaffordable.
What kind of financial help does the community get at the moment and is it good enough?
Yea. So there is some support and play place from schemes like the total Mobility scheme whereby there is subsidized public transport or taxi travel. But again again that that cost that comes into it is the time it takes to then book your taxi, to wait for your taxi hope that they will give you access to their car to get you where you need to be.
So there are some drivers that will simply just drive away if they see your dog with this absolutely.
Yeah, look absolutely. As a guide dog user, myself, Ezra and I, we have had instances where we can clear an entire taxi rank of drivers because the drivers don't want the dog in their car.
And could it be as simple as changing the rules as to you know, being able to say you have to accept somebody no matter what their circumstance.
Yeah, look, and there is legislation that supports Ezra's access as a guide dog as a service animal. We are faced with the challenge of driver behavior. Really, that's what it comes down to in terms of a driver's individual view of a dog and look, as an empowered client, I will stand there and I will cause a scene. I will quote legislation around his rights. But the excuses you get back can sometimes be quite laughable.
God, what are some of the excuses?
Oh? Look, coming back to the supermarket scenario, I was outside a popular Auckland supermarket one afternoon, needed a ride back to my hotel. At that stage, standing there with Ezra, a driver gets out of his car. I said, can you take us to our hotel please? And he said, oh, no, dog's in my taxi And I said, yes, dogs and your taxi you're acquired by or to let my service animal in your car. Oh no, no, my company doesn't
do that. He said, well, I know your company does do that, and I'm aware of the fines and the standdown period from work that you'll incur if you don't let us in your car. So then the then the excuses start coming. Oh I'm sorry, sir, but my car is too small for your dog. And I said, well, I've got all this other stuff to take with me as well. Perhaps I could leave my dog and my other stuff, but outside the supermarket and you could just take me to my hotel. He said, no, no, no,
you don't understand. My car is too old for your dog. And at that stage, I've got a bunch of customers watching me outside this particular supermarket who are there for the show. And I looked at him. I said, the only thing that's old here is your attitude. Are you going to take me to the hotel? And he drove off without a passenger.
Wow, I mean deez.
And that's just one example of how something so small can inconvenience your day and then your life. I see that there are also reports of clients delaying treatment because forms or health information isn't available in formats that they can read.
Have you encountered anything like that?
Yeah? And I think in all these scenarios, we as a community where our clients are making decisions not to attend GP appointments because when you get there, you're going to be handed a piece of a four with twelve point font on it saying can you fill this? Can you sit down over there and fill this out please? It's access to an accessible way of filling out the form would make it so much easier. It's expecting those sorts of barriers to be put in front of you
when you leave your home. That is leaving so many of our clients not leaving their home and making the decision to not be overwhelmed by those sorts of barriers.
Tell me about the community and the challenges that they face in the workplace.
Yeah, I think there are barriers in terms of seeking employment, in terms of the accessibility of recruitment processes and the attitudes towards towards people with disabilities or in our case, people with low vision or who are blind. If you can access or get through a recruitment process, you then have to go through the process of disclosing your disability, and that can scare a lot of employers off in terms of this belief that this person is going to cost me more than a non disabled person.
People with disability fees so much challenges when you look for a drop fit, and foremost to have a social stickmak because a lot of our people have a misunderstanding about what people with disability can do, to focus on what they can't do instead of focusing what they can do. The second thing is the employment of recruitment framework needs to change in New Zealand, asking questions like you know, do you have a disability and what are your medication?
That itself is actually a rope bluff and the LOTO in four years will actually cut off the candidate simply because they have a disability.
I see that one in six New Zealanders identify as disabled, sixty percent are unemployed or underemployed for blind, low vision and Z clients, fifty one percent of working age members are without a job, and seventy four percent of youth clients have never had a part time or summer job.
Now that's to me, the right of passage.
Is to you know, get a summer job or something during high school or UNI or something like that. I mean, how can we make this happen as a community, as a society to make sure these kids are getting those kind of experience.
And I think that does come into that awareness piece. If you are an employer or if you have an opportunity for somebody to volunteer with you, that you're making those opportunities available to everybody be inclusive, because those volunteering opportunities that you pick up as a young person that can turn into part time work, they turn into aspiration, and they turn into careers moving down that person's journey.
And obviously we've spoken about the financial pressures and a little bit about that emotional toll, but tell me more about that.
Because the thought of people just.
Not wanting to leave their homes because it is simply just too difficult to exist, that's really not good.
No, look, it really isn't. And it does come down to I guess, our communities seeing seeing the barriers that they're putting in front of blind, deaf, blind and low vision people, and those people are members of their community as well. We should be able to access our communities without barriers. It was only this morning on our walk into work that I had to stop at four different sites to have a conversation with a with a construction company or a tradesman who had parked their van or
their car over the footpath. Now, for that person, it's not an inconvenience. Somebody should be able to walk around their car. But for a blind person who's using a guide dog, my guide dog has to be able to find me safely around that vehicle, and you know, it compromises our safety. So that leads me to think, well, tomorrow, do I just work from home or do I need to have those conversations again tomorrow morning.
Yeah?
And I mean, I guess do you think that there's a feeling of, oh, it doesn't affect me. And like you said with that tradesperson as well, he hasn't obviously hasn't even thought about how it may affect somebody with low vision or someone who's blind or deafblind. Do you think it's because of that, because it's affects a small part of the population.
Yeah, absolutely. I mean in the vision loss community, we have a funny saying that vision loss is the disability that nobody sees. And for one, you don't see it because we're not out in community, because we are making choices not to include ourselves or to not to participate in our communities because of the barriers. But you know, disability is one of those things that if it's not in your immediate circle, it doesn't exist to you. It exists.
Disability exists to all of us, and it's in our communities. We need to be aware of it.
Well. And the fact here, I've got some numbers here. The census data shows that the number of people reporting no or limited site that affects daily activities has risen by about eight percent since twenty eighteen, from just over one hundred and sixty nine thousand to nearly one hundred and eighty three thousand and twenty twenty three.
So this means there's actually a rise in demand for support services.
Hey, is anything being done alongside this increase?
Yeah? I think as an organization Blind at Blindlow Vision, we are seeking to ensure we have the resource available to meet demand. We're in an aging population and vision loss is a disability that you acquire with as you age. So months like Blindlow Vision Month are so important because so much of what we are able to do comes from the donations of the public.
Well, isn't it about eighty percent of the organization's income comes from donations.
Wouldn't it be good to get more government support?
Look were at Blindlow Vision, We would love more government support because we are dealing with what is becoming an aging population and that one hundred and eighty thousand is set to grow over the next ten years. More government support is great, but you know, the generous donations of the public also really supports us to be able to help people to make their own choices and live in their communities the way they want.
If you could change something tomorrow, whether it be big or small, what would you do first?
I think I think the easy the first thing to change is attitude towards disability. When we are aware as a society that people with disabilities are accessing and participating in our communities. So many of the barriers are so easy to remove the people they don't come at a cost to remove. It's easy for a tradesman to park their van on the side of the side of the road rather than over a driveway, and for their inconvenience,
that's only three extra steps to their van. So I think awareness and changing attitudes is a good first step towards a barrier free New Zealand.
Why don't you think it's happened yet?
Look, I think I think we are on a journey in organizations like blind, low vision like ours, we need to do a better job of getting in front of our communities and there is some responsibility on ourselves, as blind, deaf, blind and low vision people to seek that inclusion and participation.
Are there any workplaces or companies that are doing a good job.
Yeah? Look, there are plenty of workplaces that are doing a good job, but a lot that could do a better job, and a lot that need to start that journey. So at Blind Low Vision, we're we're here to support that journey as well.
Thanks for joining us, Dan.
Hey, you very welcome. Thanks for your time.
That's it for this episode of the Front Page. You can read more about today's stories and extensive news coverage at nzadherld dot co dot nz. The Front Page is produced by Jane Ye and Richard Martin, who is also our editor. I'm Chelsea Daniels. Subscribe to the Front Page on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts, and tune in tomorrow for another look behind the headlines.