Living and working with a Handicap — Why diversity and inclusion matters at a work place
Writen by Harald Sattelberg Daniel Shafie oversees the Sales Promotions department at Schneider Electric’s office in Wiehl, Germany, leading a team of six colleagues. In June 2015, a serious sports accident caused irreparable damage to Daniel’s cervical vertebrae which led to paraplegia. Since then, he has been paralyzed from the chest down with very limited hand function. Although this disability means that continuing in the same way before the accident was almost impossible, we have worked with him to find ways to enable Daniel to return to his job and retain an excellent colleague. Daniel returned to the office at the beginning of 2016, after only seven months of rehabilitation. In this interview, he tells what effect the accident has had on his everyday working life, why it is worth keeping up the fight and why inclusion matters at a work place . Harald Sattelberg (HS): Daniel, your job requires a lot of travelling. Tell us about the logistical and organizational challenges...