#JobsForDisabled – Star Bazaar deaf employees Mukta, Adil & Murugesh get a chance to shine in different roles

Walk into any Star Bazaar store and chances are that you will get to interact or watch a number of employees with disabilities at work. That’s because inclusion is a core value at Trent Hypermarket Private Ltd- Star Bazaar. On #JobsForDisabled, we profile three deaf employees across different stores in Mumbai, who tell us why they love coming to work everyday.

As an employee in the Staples department at the Star Bazaar Hypermarket store in Andheri, Murugesh Changayya, has an important role to play. “I have to make sure that the food items are not past their expiry date or the packets are not damaged”, says this 43-year-old, who communicates in sign language.

Murugesh has been working here for seven years and loves his work.“Customers come to me with the products they have picked out like fruits and vegetables. I put them in packets, weigh each item and label them. I love interacting with them”.

Walk through any Star Bazaar store in the cities of Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, and one will find a number of people with disabilities working. That’s because Trent Hypermarket-Star Bazaar, has taken proactive steps towards creating an inclusive workplace.

Mukta Garje, a deaf employee at the Star Bazaar store in Hubtown, likes the supportive atmosphere. “I work in the Food & Beverages department and have learned many things like merchandising and re-filling the products. I love to work here”. This is her second job and Mukta says she went through an initial period of training after she joined over two years ago.

Varied Roles

What is significant is number of disabled people in responsible roles. Take Adil Salim Patnakar, a cashier, at Star Bazaar, Mistry Bhawan. “I handle a lot of money everyday and this is an important job”, says the 28-year-old who is deaf. Adil’s role requires him to scan the items customers bring to the billing counters. “I have to ensure the items are numbered properly and give the right amount of cash to them”. Adil loves to interact with customers and considers that to be among the highlights of his day at work.

Having employees with diverse abilities on board, says Shyam Kachale, Team Manager, Andheri Hypermarket, has helped build greater empathy and forge a closer bond with customers.

“Our customers feel a sense of pride in coming to a store where people with disabilities have a place and are treated as equals. We have got great feedback from customers and this has also helped bring disabled and non-disabled employees closer. There are so many people coming in everyday, which leads to greater mingling and sensitisation”.

Adil says he feels proud that he has a visible, front-facing role. “I am happy that customers get to see a deaf person doing a role like this and in interacting with them, I am getting to make a change in attitudes towards people with disabilities”.