A few months ago, the famous pastry chef Christophe Michalak welcomed in his laboratory a young autistic student in training for his CAP. “It went rather well”, says the former pastry chef of the Plaza Athénée, now at the head of his own company of around fifty employees. “We are a small team, with a real family spirit and a lot of mutual help, he continues. A well-trained young autistic person has his place in our profession, especially in the chocolate part which requires a lot of control and concentration. “
→ CONTEXT. Autism: what has changed in the past two years
The former world pastry champion nevertheless admits that the experience will have been stressful for him. “In the kitchen, the accident quickly happened, he sums up. There are knives, heat, burns: I was always worried about him. “ Before confiding, with a certain humility, “Not be sure to try the experience again”.
“It is true that in pastry making, it is less tense than in the kitchen. But in a small structure like ours, everyone is multitasking, you have to be responsive and this is not necessarily a framework for an autistic person, he admits. It might be easier in a big house with well-defined areas and a routine where everyone can focus on a specific task. “
“It is for my qualities that I am here”
The difficulty in concentrating while ignoring outside interactions, Laura, 25, had a bitter experience when, to pay for her studies, she was a cashier in a supermarket. “I had to recount the money, talk to customers, and, in addition to the noise, I had the impression that my eye was always diverted by the lights”, explains the young woman. A whirlwind, until the fatal cash error … Will follow several refusals of hiring related to his autism.
The one who is completing a master’s degree at the École des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales has now found a job as a translator and proofreader in a publishing house. A job more up to her training, where she can “Read things that interest me” and where it found its place.
“With my way of speaking, people find me a little original, she says with a fast and slightly jerky flow. But I know that it is for my qualities that I am here: what others may find strange about me is experienced here as an aptitude for the job. ” She nevertheless decided not to talk about her disability to her employers, “So that the way people look at me does not change”.
“We were not dealing with a disabled”
According to the Ifop survey carried out for the SOS Autisme France association, if 40% of French workers say they would feel” empathy “ if they were to work with an autistic person, they are still 29% to recognize“Apprehension”, 28% of the “Curiosity”. And even 3% of the “Fear”… “There may be questions, but more like ‘Am I going to be able to deal with such a different person?’ “, explains Emmanuelle Gaye-Pouedras, head of diversity in the human resources department of Adidas.
Last year, the sports equipment manufacturer welcomed a young autistic in one of its stores. “A father had written to nominate his son, a sports enthusiast, she says. We spoke with him to see what was possible and it went extremely well for him and for the team. A little reluctant at first, the manager told us how much he had learned about himself and his support skills with respect to a person, different at times, but absolutely not at others. “
“We were not dealing with a handicapped person but first of all with a brilliant young man”, testifies for its part Benjamin Lagnado who welcomed a young autistic in his Parisian firm of chartered accountant. “It was far from being a burden! Certainly, we are fortunate to be a profession where there are a lot of procedures and which can particularly suit an autistic person, but I must say that he had a higher level than many other trainees that we have. could have “, he continues, while acknowledging certain peculiarities: “No doubt he understood the second degree a little less and he needed to isolate himself a little more from the noise. “
At Passwerk, “coaches” to make the link
“We ask companies to make small adjustments, which cost them nothing, such as moving a wardrobe to create a little privacy in an open space, or avoiding there being too many external stimuli to which most autistic people are very sensitive ”, explains Dirk Rombaut, director of Passwerk, a Belgian company that employs 140 consultants with Asperger’s disease in software testing and development, quality assurance and business intelligence.
95% of them work directly with clients. “At the beginning, there may be a reluctance among those who do not know autistic disorders but very quickly they realize the strengths of autistic people: their logical mind, the eye for detail, their great concentration …”
One of the keys to Passwerk’s success is the support put in place, in particular thanks to 15 “coaches” who act as the link between the consultants and the companies. “It is very important for people with autism to have benchmarks: the simple fact that the coach is a little late can be a great source of anxiety, with a whisk Dirk Rombaud. The consultants inform the coaches every day by email of their stress level and they visit them every two weeks in the company. “
Support
In France, only 0.5% of autistic people work in traditional businesses, but these are gradually opening up, as evidenced by the Ifop-SOS Autism survey. To go further than the first successful experience of a store, Adidas has chosen to sign an agreement with SOS Autism which will help it identify future collaborators in its network.
“It is obvious that someone who is shy, we are not going to put him in front of the customers, but with the association, we have identified positions whether in the installation of shelves, inventory management or data analysis’, explains Emmanuelle Gaye-Pouedras. A selection which is made without CV but according to aptitudes. “What matters to us is interpersonal skills, motivation, passion for sport…”, she explains. Support will also be put in place for employees and their managers to ensure that things go as well as possible.
“Today, companies are ready to play their part to make a difference, testifies an HR manager. But if we also feel the will of the State to make things happen, there are still too many rigidities and a link is missing to make the link between autistic people and the business world. There would really be a need for a cognitive handicap “employment center” to help companies recruit. “
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Autism affects around 1% of the population
Autism, the manifestations of which are described under the heading Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), is a human neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by a persistent deficit in communication and social interactions, as well as behaviors and narrow, repetitive and stereotypical interests.
There are different levels of severity of symptoms, hence the notion of “spectrum”. It is estimated that about 50% of people with autism will not acquire language. People without an intellectual disability represent about 10% of autistic people.
According to the National Autism Strategy, autism affects approximately 1% of the population. Autism affects boys three to four times more than girls.
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