CREATING AN INCLUSIVE WORKPLACE FOR ALL

Creating inclusive workplaces for everyone and meeting ambitious diversity, equity, and inclusion benchmarks have become strategic priorities for organizations. Only when we identify and address the juxtaposing views and acceptance of the DIFFERENCE of each employee demographic can we begin to narrow the inclusion gap in the workplace.

The voices of individuals most underrepresented in the workforce and those disproportionately affected by the pandemic and economic disruption need to be heard. We will be discussing the forgotten voice of those with seen/unseen disabilities during Connections 4 Success’s Executive Roundtable.

Systems and strategies to acknowledge, hear, and best represent individuals with seen/unseen disabilities also need to be prioritized for all organizations’ DEI strategic initiatives.

Why is it important?

• Only 19% of individuals with a disability are employed – Bureau of Labor Statistics, March 2022 TED Report
• 15% of the World’s Population lives with some form of disability – World Health Organization
• The New Hampshire University Institute on Disability reports approximately 1 million U.S. workers with disabilities have lost their jobs since the World Health Organization proclaimed the outbreak a pandemic in March 2020.
• Employed working-age people with disabilities fell by 20% (950,000 people) vs. a decrease of 14% people without a disability from March-April 2020 – Kessler Foundation, Special Report: Workers with Disabilities in the COVID-19 Economy
• 4.5 million people resigning from their jobs in January 2022 – U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics May 2022 JOLTS Report

Join the movement to create systemic change in diversity, equity, and inclusion mindset shifts, understanding, and acceptance during this Executive Roundtable.

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Discussion Topics:

• How are your company’s DEI employee resource groups safeguarding the voice and inclusion of individuals with disabilities?
• What systems does your organization have to identify needs and ensure professional upward mobility for individuals with disabilities?
• What systems does your organization have to ensure the continued support and access to assistive technology equipment for employees with disabilities while working under remote and alternative work policies?

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Executive Roundtable Takeaways:

• An awareness of the importance of including the voice of those with seen/unseen disabilities
• How-to Steps to begin evaluating the effectiveness of including individuals with disabilities in employee resource groups
• An understanding of how to balance a disabled employee’s privacy while having their voice and needs represented in DEI reforms and strategic objectives
• Ability to create a genuinely inclusive workplace

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