Meaningful work experience despite physical disability

 ‘Special Place for Special People’ was a project designed specifically to introduce people with disabilities to the labour market. As part of the project, RB Café in Riga hired young people with physical disabilities and mental health conditions, defying stereotypes regarding their abilities.

One of the employees, 24-year-old Diana, requires a wheelchair for mobility but does not allow her physical disability to stop her. With a degree in marketing and a keen artistic eye, Diana was looking for a paid job opportunity to utilise her academic skills and talents. More importantly, she wanted to gain work experience to kickstart her future career.

On a typical day, Diana worked from morning to afternoon, taking care of communications and PR for the café, which included social media management and graphic design. She also provided expertise on how to price and present products as well as how to organise the café. Along with her behind the scenes work, she helped with the café’s day to day operations.

Updated on Wednesday, 14/10/2020