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P R O F E S S IO N A L D E V E L O P M E N T F O R C A N A DA' S O F F IC E S U P P O R T S TA F F
Administrative
Assistant's
UPDATE
INSIDE
Attitude or IQ? . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Do brainy people have the advantage
in workplace performance?
Worker accommodation . . . . . 5
Legislation, logic slowly changing
employer's view of disability
Free training videos . . . . . . . . 6
Stay on top of your offi ce skills with
wealth of online resources
Those pesky pronouns . . . . . . 8
Your fi rst impression may not be
the right one, so be careful
Continued on page 4
Hiring for ability, not disability
By Jennifer Lewington
People with disabilities, women
in particular, face barriers to
employment. When they fi nd work,
they typically earn less than able-
bodied counterparts and are more
likely to be in short-term or part-time
jobs.
Women with disabilities earn
an average of $22,000 compared to
$31,000 for their male counterparts,
according to a federal labour market
analysis cited by the Council of
Canadians with Disabilities.
The analysis comes as the
Ontario government introduces
the next phase of its Accessibility
for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
on Jan 1, 2016, with companies of
more than 50 employees expected
to develop individual workplace
accommodation plans.
With the spotlight on workplace
accessibility, AAU asked two
administrative professionals with
disabilities to share their stories.
Forecast: 2.6
per cent salary
increases
Salaries are expected to rise 2.6 per
cent in 2016, down slightly from 2.8
per cent forecast this year, accord-
ing to a survey of employers in a
cross-section of industries conduct-
ed by Morneau Shepell, a national
human resources consulting fi rm.
In Trends in Human Resources,
which surveyed organizations with
640,000 people in Canada, Morneau
Shepell noted that Quebec employ-
ers, more so than the rest of the
country, expect to focus next year
on reducing costs in short term dis-
ability, retirement and health and
dental plans.
For more details, visit: http://
www.morneaushepell.com.
NOVEMBER 2015
Taunya Proudlove, administrative and
meeting assistant, City of Edmonton
Taunya Proudlove:
'Take what you love,
make it your job'
In a phone interview, Taunya Proud-
love's love of her job, and life, rings
loud and clear.
She works in the clerk's offi ce of
the city of Edmonton as an adminis-
trative and meeting assistant, help-
ing council with scheduling, website
updates, correspondence and room
bookings. Proudlove, who joined the
city fi ve years ago, currently is on a
short-term assignment as a corporate
business lead, assisting in the man-
agement and storage of city docu-
ments. Recently, she was seconded
to help the clerk's offi ce run a local
school board by-election.
