Aim of this toolkit
This toolkit has simple, clear and practical information on how to hire and support neurodivergent employees in the public sector.
To use this toolkit, you don’t need to be recruiting or managing neurodivergent employees.
Our advice is helpful for all employees and will promote a neurodivergent-friendly workplace.
Why we wrote this toolkit
The public sector workforce benefits from having those with different experiences and perspectives work together.
Workplace diversity can:
- aid critical thinking and creative problem-solving within your team and organisation
- support growth among employees
- encourage reflection about communication and working styles
- reduce the chance of poor decision-making due to a lack of diverse thinking.
When we wrote this toolkit, there were few resources for employers to learn about and create neurodiverse-inclusive workplaces.
Neurodivergent people face barriers to gaining and keeping employment. But in many cases, simple changes can reduce or remove these barriers.
The key to success for neurodivergent employees is a supportive workplace, manager and team.
Neurodivergent employees are often creative problem solvers. They may be able to suggest a wider range of solutions and identify problems in projects early on.
And many neurodivergent people also have strong interests. They can thrive in an environment where they can integrate their interests into their work.
We hope this toolkit is a useful resource that helps you to:
- learn about neurodiversity
- build your capability to attract, recruit, onboard and support neurodivergent employees.
Learning how to be inclusive of neurodivergent employees or colleagues is an ongoing process.
Our intent is for this toolkit to be a starting point that you can refer to as needed.
“I have a very strong work ethic and am resilient – I have had to be to compensate for my difficulties and challenges. As a result, I have developed a growth mindset, critical thinking and problem-solving skills that are valuable to any workforce” – Neurodivergent employee
How we wrote this toolkit
A neurodiverse team developed this toolkit including:
- the Victorian Public Sector Commission, in collaboration with the Autism Success Network
- Dr Rebecca Flower and Ellen Richardson from the Department of Psychology, Counselling and Therapy, La Trobe University.
We wrote the toolkit with the most up-to-date knowledge at the time, using:
- peer-reviewed research
- the experience of the development team
- significant consultation with experts on neurodivergence and employees with lived and professional experience.
The quotes in this toolkit are from the neurodivergent people we consulted.
We consulted with Victorian public sector employees from these departments and internal groups:
- Auditor General’s Office
- Autism Success Network
- Disability Employment Community of Practice
- Enablers Network
- Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Action
- Department of Families, Fairness, and Housing
- Department of Government Services
- Department of Justice and Community Safety
- Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry, and Regions
- Department of Premier and Cabinet
- Victorian Public Sector Commission.