Close X
Sunday, November 10, 2024
ADVT 
National

September Is Disability Employment Month In B.C.

, 02 Sep, 2016 02:07 PM
    This September, British Columbia will celebrate inclusive employers and the contributions of people with disabilities in the workplace with the third-annual Disability Employment Month.
     
    This recognition of meaningful employment for people with disabilities is an integral part of Accessibility 2024, the 10-year action plan to make B.C. the most progressive province in Canada for people with disabilities.
     
    During the month of September, WorkBC Employment Services Centres throughout British Columbia will host open houses, job fairs and workshops to highlight the range of services and supports available to help job seekers with disabilities, as well as resources for employers who want to hire people with disabilities and build inclusive workplaces.
     
    A network of B.C. business leaders – the Presidents Group – champion employment and consumer opportunities and improved outcomes for people with disabilities. Presidents Group members are actively encouraging employers to hire more people with disabilities and share their collective learnings on the recruitment, hiring and retention of employees with disabilities with other employers.
     
    Employers from all sectors of British Columbia recognize the benefits people with disabilities bring to the workplace.
     
    For example, Vancity recently identified a business need within their enterprise-wide information technology upgrade project that aligned with the skill sets of people on the autism spectrum and hired eight people who have been on the job since December 2015.
     
    Another B.C. employer, Pacific Bolt Manufacturing, recently hired Jamie, a young man with an intellectual disability as a facilities technician, responsible for sorting, packaging and janitorial duties. Jamie was hired through Ready, Willing and Able, a national initiative designed to increase labour force participation of people with intellectual disabilities and autism.
     
    The City of Surrey, a public sector organization with 4,000 employees, is also working hard to become a “disability confident” employer. 
     
    Surrey has hired people with disabilities for a variety of roles, including athletes with disabilities, like former Paralympian Alison Kabush, who works as an instructor for Surrey’s sports and recreation programs, including the Boccia program, an adapted version of Bocce for players aged six years and up.
     
    Each of these employers understands that hiring people with disabilities is good for business. Almost 90% of consumers prefer companies that employ people with disabilities, according to a study cited in a conference board report.
     
    Job seekers and employers can contact their local WorkBC Employment Services Centre to learn more about inclusive hiring resources and services and supports to help people with disabilities obtain employment.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Smoked Meat And Basketball: Trudeau Takes Lighter Approach To Connect With China

    Smoked Meat And Basketball: Trudeau Takes Lighter Approach To Connect With China
    SHANGHAI — With the higher-stakes political discussions behind him, Justin Trudeau's week-long mission to foster Canadian-Chinese relations adopted a lighter tone Friday.

    Smoked Meat And Basketball: Trudeau Takes Lighter Approach To Connect With China

    Frightened Pooch Plucked From Side Of Rocky Cliff In Daring Rescue

    Frightened Pooch Plucked From Side Of Rocky Cliff In Daring Rescue
    PARADISE, N.L. — A lucky, but tired dog is back with his family after rescuers plucked him from the side of a sheer cliff where he had been stranded for days.

    Frightened Pooch Plucked From Side Of Rocky Cliff In Daring Rescue

    Frustrated Vandal Silences Noisy Piano In New Brunswick Town's Square

    Frustrated Vandal Silences Noisy Piano In New Brunswick Town's Square
    SUSSEX, N.B. — A New Brunswick man unhappy with a noisy outdoor piano in his local town square took matters into his own hands this week: He screwed the key cover shut.

    Frustrated Vandal Silences Noisy Piano In New Brunswick Town's Square

    Police In B.C. City Believe Fentanyl Involved In 9 Overdoses Within 20 Minutes

    DELTA, B.C. — It's a miracle that no one died after nine people overdosed within a 20-minute period on what are believed to be drugs laced with fentanyl, a police chief in British Columbia says.

    Police In B.C. City Believe Fentanyl Involved In 9 Overdoses Within 20 Minutes

    Final Arguments Delayed In Trial For Woman Charged With Hiding Infant Remains

    Final Arguments Delayed In Trial For Woman Charged With Hiding Infant Remains
    WINNIPEG — Closing arguments in the trial of a Winnipeg woman charged with hiding the remains of six infants in a storage locker have been delayed.

    Final Arguments Delayed In Trial For Woman Charged With Hiding Infant Remains

    3 Surrey High School Teachers Temporarily Suspended Over 'Jar Of Death' Punishments

    3 Surrey High School Teachers Temporarily Suspended Over 'Jar Of Death' Punishments
    Campers were pressured to lick a teacher's foot, chew gum that had been chewed by another teacher and drink a glass of water into which four people had spat

    3 Surrey High School Teachers Temporarily Suspended Over 'Jar Of Death' Punishments