Honour employees with disabilities with these five Disability Employment Awareness Month celebratory ideas, inspired by Thrive, ADP's disabilities-focused business resource group.
Disability Employment Awareness Month (DEAM) is a proclaimed period by provinces across Canada for recognizing the contributions of employees with disabilities. You likely manage employees who have seen and unseen disabilities, all of whom have unique experiences in the workforce. People with disabilities experience disability-related biases at work, have received fewer expressions of interest when disclosing their disabilities on well-qualified mock job applications and contend with a lack of physical accessibility and other accommodations in some workplaces. During DEAM and beyond, it is important to reduce the frequency of these and similar practices.
"As we celebrate NDEAM, it's essential to recognize the contributions of people with disabilities in driving innovation and progress across all industries," says Giselle Mota, chief of product inclusion, ADP. Mota is also the external affairs lead for Thrive, ADP's disabilities-focused business resource group (BRG). "From smart traffic signals to intelligent assistants and more, countless technologies and advancements have been created and inspired by people with disabilities. By embracing accessibility, accommodations and diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I), we can create more supportive workplaces and unlock the full potential of this talented and valuable group of workers. NDEAM reminds us to honor their contributions and renew our commitments to building fairer, more accessible workplaces for all."
What is National Disability Employment Awareness Month
DEAM, also known as “Disability Employment Awareness Month” or “Disability Awareness Month,” acknowledges, celebrates and commemorates the contributions of employees with disabilities. It also raises awareness of employment-related issues unique to people with disabilities.
How do you celebrate National Disability Employment Awareness Month at work?
Celebrate DEAM at work by learning the facts. The Canadian Association for Supported Employment maintains a DEAM toolkit that may prove helpful to organizations looking to celebrate. Plan events with inclusion in mind. Seek expertise in DE&I, inclusive language and disability employment issues, including hiring and retention. Avoid pressuring employees, especially employees with disabilities, to plan and participate in DEAM activities, and be kind, humble and diplomatic if you plan to ask. For some practical ways to recognize DEAM, check out the list of ideas below, inspired by the activities of ADP’s Thrive BRG:
5 ways to recognize National Disability Employment Awareness Month at Work
1. Discuss the importance of disability inclusion
Consider convening a panel of leaders, experts, employees with disabilities, caregivers and allies to discuss the importance of disability inclusion at work. Part of the "I" in DE&I, disability inclusion is defined as "persons with disabilities can access the same opportunities to participate in all aspects of life, be it at home, at school, on the job, or elsewhere in the community, without barriers. Achieving disability inclusion necessarily requires a societal approach.” An expert-led panel is a prime opportunity to educate employees about disability inclusion and let employees with disabilities, caregivers and allies share their personal and professional experiences. Alternative discussion topics include disability-based discrimination in the workplace, seen and unseen disabilities, accommodations for employees with disabilities, self-identification, accessible technologies and neurodiversity.
Make your discussions as inclusive and accessible as possible by providing virtual attendance options, post-event recordings, alt-text in any images used, video captions, sign language interpreters and verbalized, self-descriptive speaker introductions — for example, "I am a man with black hair, brown eyes and glasses. I am currently in my office." Additionally, avoid blinking or flashing elements, as they may affect people who are photosensitive.
2. Feature a speaker or performer with a disability
Inviting a speaker or performer to share their personal disability story or creative work can generate employee interest in DEAM and demonstrate that disabilities can be a part of anyone's life, regardless of their profession or background. During a previous DEAM, Thrive featured jazz and soul vocalist Chantae Cann, who performed a selection of her songs and discussed her experience with Huntington's disease (HD). Thrive has also hosted Lachi, a singer and DE&I advocate who is blind. Likewise, consider researching speakers and performers with disabilities and asking them to contribute to your celebration.
3. Host a disability awareness and etiquette session
Disability awareness and etiquette sessions can help employees increase their understanding of people with disabilities, uncover their misconceptions and biases and learn specific strategies for interacting with people with disabilities. Consider partnering with an expert in disabilities to inform the session and provide best practices and next steps. Consider exploring the resources and expertise available to you and whether this type of session would benefit your employees.
4. Review your hiring process
Job descriptions, interview questions and hiring practices that use inclusive language and comply with applicable Canadian human rights and accessibility laws are important to improve disability inclusion, accessibility and employment outcomes. What better time to initiate a review than during DEAM? For example, if a job description requires the ability to lift 25 pounds or the ability to walk, sit and stand for long periods, consider whether these requirements are necessary for the position. If they are, consider replacing them with inclusive alternatives. To develop inclusive interview questions, learn more about ways to eliminate disability biases during interviewing and consult Canadian employment regulations for interviewing guidance. Remember that Canadian law prohibits medical inquiries and asking disability-related questions before a job offer is made except in specific circumstances. Also, explore ways to improve digital accessibility, given that many hiring tasks now occur online.
"Accessible hiring practices are often overlooked," says Kelsey Hall, head of accessibility, ADP. "We can start by offering reasonable accommodations, such as accessible interview locations and appropriate communication supports, to ensure candidates with disabilities can adequately showcase their skills. We can also use inclusive language in interview questions, job descriptions, recruitment marketing collateral and other hiring materials, as well as offer accessible documents and website experiences, which are easier for candidates with disabilities to navigate and understand. Finally, providing accessibility training to hiring teams can raise awareness of candidates with disabilities' needs. Using these practices, we can help ensure that candidates with disabilities have equal employment opportunities while tapping into this still-untapped talent market."
5. Establish or join a business resource group
A BRG focused on disability DE&I can become your organization's go-to space for employees with disabilities, caregivers and allies, allowing them to network, learn from each other, access educational resources, plan events and effect change. The BRG can be driven and led by these three groups, giving you a direct line to people with relevant lived experiences who can inform your disability inclusion initiatives. At ADP, Thrive is home to associates with disabilities, caregiving responsibilities and associates passionate about creating a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace. During DEAM, Thrive partners with ADP's DE&I office to host events that empower associates to effect positive change at work and in their communities.
Visit ADP Canada's DE&I Resource Hub for more on how your organization can do and be its best.
This article originally appeared on SPARK Powered by ADP.
