Case Study
Participation in working life for a female prosecutor

This is the Ministry of Justice of a federal state or the Attorney General's Office there.

The woman is of short stature and has a height of 1.12 meters. Her body measurements are reduced and her reach/foot space and mobility are limited. She relies on the use of a cane or forearm crutches to get around.

After leaving high school with a high school diploma, the woman initially wanted to study medicine. However, because of her disability, she would not have been licensed to practice medicine. She therefore decided to study law. During her studies, there were some problems, for example, the books on the shelves of the libraries were too high and the literature-dependent seminar papers were therefore only possible in group work. In this process, fellow students searched for and gave her the books and she evaluated them. In order to compensate for the handicap-related disadvantages, the integration or inclusion office provided the student with a study assistant for homework and the university or the examination office granted an extension of the processing time for homework, examinations and the written examinations. After her studies or first state examination, she changed to the legal clerkship, during which she worked at a public prosecutor's office, among others. Among other things, she prepared indictments and penalty orders and gave pleas in court. During the pleas, she wore a black suit instead of a robe, as these did not exist in such a short form. She eventually completed her clerkship successfully and has been working as a prosecutor since then.

For the most part, the prosecutor works at a workplace in an office that is adapted to her needs or suitable for disabled people. The low office chair at her VDT workstation has wide padded armrests and a shortened seat. The low height of the office chair makes it easy to sit down/stand up and the shortened seat allows the legs to be bent normally and the feet to be supported on the floor. The computer on the work table includes a special split small keyboard, which can be used without difficulty in the limited gripping space. The files or binders as well as folders required for case processing are requested by her and brought to her in the office by judicial clerks or administrators, where they are placed on a specially made work table with a roundel (turntable). At the push of a button, the prosecutor can start the rotary movement of the work tabless with an electric motor and position the corresponding file in front of her for viewing. This has the advantage that she does not have to bend over the work table or climb a ladder on a shelf to reach files.
An additional help is her assistance dog. He has been specially trained for the situations in which the woman needs assistance and thus guarantees her greater independence. For example, he helps her pick up her forearm crutch or small objects (pens, sheets of paper, etc.) from the floor.
Another part of her working time is spent in the courtroom. In court, or during hearings, the prosecutor wears a tailored robe. In the courtroom, the prosecutor uses a specially maneuverable electric wheelchair with a seat lift and footrest during the sometimes lengthy hearings.

The public prosecutor uses her car with automatic transmission and electrically adjustable exterior mirrors for her daily commute. It was additionally equipped with adaptations suitable for disabled people with:

• an adapted vehicle seat with a 6-way electrically smoothly adjustable seat (height and tilt adjustment, forward and backward),
• a small sport steering wheel with buttons to operate secondary functions (turn signals, windshield wipers, horn and lights),
• a modified power steering system for operation by a person with low arm strength,
• Pedal extensions to operate the accelerator and brake,
• a brake booster for easier braking,
• an extension to operate the hand brake and the automatic selector lever,
• a larger rear-view mirror to compensate for the limited rear field of vision and
• a parking heater to avoid the need to remove snow and ice from the windows.

In addition, the vehicle has a loading aid (electric crane) that she can use to load and unload her tricycle. For the driving of the car appropriate conditions were made by the driving license office and the TÜV.

The prosecutor parks in a parking space reserved for her near the entrance. The entrance to the prosecutor's office building is at ground level and she reaches her office on the 3rd floor by lift. She can open the doors on the way to her office by herself or her assistance dog.

Work design suitable for disabled people, motor vehicle acquisition (in part), and motor vehicle adaptations were funded by the Integration and Inclusion Office, respectively. Advice on work design was provided by the Technical Advisory Service of the Integration and Inclusion Office, and advice on vehicle adaptation was provided by the company converting the vehicle.