Disabled praised

Press, 8 July 1982, Page 4

Disabled praised

Parliamentary reporter The disabled often had a better attitude towards work than most able-bodied employees, said the chief executive of' Fletcher Challenge, Mr R. R. Trotter, at the Beehive in Wellington yesterday. He was speaking at the presentation of awards to the disabled in which a Christchurch man, Mr G. Tapper, won the main award for disabled employees. Mr Tapper is an administration officer at the spinal injuries unit at Burwood Hospital. Because the handicapped had had to surmount per-

sonal hurdles to live with their handicap and to make a positive contribution to society, they tended to complain less and produce more, he said. They. also had a pride in their workmanship. Fletcher-Challenge sponsored the awards last year, the year of the disabled, to continue the increased awareness of the handicapped and their potential in the work-force. The Minister of Social Welfare (Mr Young),• who presented the' awards, said that although he could give no assurance on increased Government grants to em-

ployers, the Government would help with the publicity of the needs and talents of the handicapped, and incentives to employers. There were 62 nominations for the two awards, one for employers of the disabled, and one for disabled employees. The Christchurch winners of merit awards were P.D.E. Industries, who employ 19 disabled persons in its main Christchurch factory; Chreon Industries, which has six disabled persons in a staff of 15; and Mr E. Dickerson,' an administration officer at Christchurch Polytechnic.