People

Elected: The new Council for Disablity Concerns of the TU Ilmenau

In autumn 2020, a new was elected Council for Disablity Concerns (SBV) at TU Ilmenau. Christine Spira was elected to head the six-member body as the  Council for Disablity Concerns for Representative for Disability Concerns.

Group photo from the Council for Disablity Concerns on front of the Ernst Abbe Center. Barbara Aichroth
Representative for Disability Concerns Christine Spira with other members of the Council for Disablity Concerns at TU Ilmenau.

Among other things, Christine Spira brings a wealth of experience to her position from her many years of work in the integration service for people with disabilities and in equal opportunities work at the TU Ilmenau. The SBV chairwoman wants to use this experience and the associated networking and close cooperation with numerous contact points and authorities to further advance the work on all matters relating to the support of employees with health restrictions at the TU Ilmenau together with her team. The broad spectrum of tasks ranges from A for contact persons to B for accessibility and V for trust culture. Currently, the psychological effects of the Corona pandemic are demanding the special attention of the representative body for the severely disabled. Christine Spira:

Even before the Corona crisis, Germany was in the top field of an EU comparative study on mental illnesses with 12 percent. With the Corona crisis, this figure has risen significantly. Especially people with pre-existing mental illnesses now have an increased need for support, also at the TU Ilmenau. As Council for Disablity Concerns we are committed to clearly defined structures and regulations that serve to jointly manage the crisis and prepare for the time after Corona.

Among other things, a service agreement on the inclusion of people with disabilities or people who are at risk of becoming disabled is planned. At the same time, managers are to receive further training in the law on severely disabled persons, regular employee interviews are to be held and qualification plans agreed with severely disabled employees and employees with equal rights. "In this way, we want to make it easier to access and accept advice and individually tailored support services," explains Christine Spira. "We are happy to provide advice and support, for example, on all issues relating to integration into working life, health problems in working life or prolonged illness and the design of the workplace. We help with applications to offices and authorities and are involved in dismissal protection proceedings. Our common goal is to create very good working conditions for severely disabled people and people treated as equal by the Federal Employment Agency at our university."

Katharina Trippler (1st deputy, University Computer Centre), Falk Amling (Faculty of Mechanical Engineering), Ilona Griebel (Faculty of Economics and Media), Dr. Mike Günther (Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences), and Frank Oßmann (Faculty of Mechanical Engineering) were elected as deputies. The term of office began on 27 October 2020 and ends on 30 November 2022.

Contact

Christine Spira

Representative for Disability Concerns