Blind electrician struggles to get job

Even after years of mastering trades that require hands-on skill, blind multi-skilled tradesman Dean Whyte is still facing closed doors.

Desperate to be seen and heard, Whyte has taken to YouTube and TikTok to showcase his talents -- but opportunities remain elusive.

"Things get more difficult 'cause things constantly a change; but what nah change is, mi nah get no steady work," Whyte said, voicing the frustration of someone constantly fighting to survive.

Whyte says he is a self-taught electrician, plumber and tiler. He also holds a HEART/NSTA certification in shoemaking, but has been unable to earn from that skill.

"Right now, it rough fi make shoes in Jamaica, and that's why me can't do much in that business," he said. "People rather buy one $2,000 pair a shoes than pay a shoemaker fi mek one, or even fix what dem already have."

Whyte says he find himself "totally bruck" at times because of his inability to secure jobs.

"Normally, mi woulda do likkle plumbing in Kingston, but after the job is done they won't call back, because the problem is fixed," he told THE STAR."I try to make every effort to try and do something to survive daily, and to support my son going to school."

The fight is relentless. "Sometimes I can't even find it to send him to school, but I had a stepchild that help me out, or some relative or friend will step in. Anything I get I have to stretch it to ensure he gets to school."

In a bold move, born out of desperation, Whyte turned to social media to prove his capabilities.

"Mi go as far as fi go pon YouTube and TikTok fi show say mi can do the work. Mi always willing fi work, but dem nuh want employ me. Blind people nuh have no opportunity fi work and provide fi themselves and them family."

The 48-year-old Longville Park resident lost his sight to glaucoma in 2015. Before that, he worked as a security guard for more than a decade.

Daemion McLean, chairman of the Jamaica Society for the Blind, said Whyte's struggle highlights a systemic problem faced by persons who lose their sight later in life.

"Both academically inclined and vocationally skilled blind persons are struggling for jobs," he said.

McLean said that people with disabilities face unemployment rates nine to 10 times higher than the national average, with blind individuals making up a large portion of this group. He explained that misconceptions and fear frequently prevent competent blind individuals from securing jobs.

"People look at persons and because of their disability, because they are blind, they don't employ them. There are fears -- fear of injury, fear that it will be an additional burden -- but the Jamaica Society for the Blind is there to talk employers through how blind persons operate in the workplace and what adjustments may be needed," McLean said.

He urged potential employers to give Whyte a chance to prove himself.

"Give him a chance to reassure you that he can do the work. Don't shut him down because he is blind. Whatever steps you would apply to a sighted person, extend that courtesy to the blind person. Employers shut down applications without investigating whether the person can actually do the job. You never can tell what you may learn," he said.

For Whyte, the request remains the same, an opportunity to work and provide for his family, but is now seeing tough times.

Dean Whyte may be contacted via telephone at (876) 828-2915.

Donations may be made to his National Commercial Bank savings account: 874198145