One in five Australians live with disability. This includes those living with mental health conditions. If you don’t already employ people with disability, it’s likely that you will in the future. , What’s the business case?, People with disability bring a range of skills and abilities to the workplace. Employees with disability are:, reliable, – people with disability take fewer days off, take less sick leave and stay in their jobs longer than other workers., productive, – when in the right job, people with disability work as well as others., good for business, – people with disability build strong customer relationships. They boost staff morale and help create a diverse workforce. Employing people with disability can improve the company’s image as a place that reflects the community. Employment success stories Many employers in different industries have benefited from employing people with disability. Among these employers are:, PwC Australia, , a Professional services firm, employs Nicole Vongdara. She is a Senior Manager in Diversity and Inclusion. She says, ‘employees with disability bring valuable new perspectives, skills and diversity to our team’. Read a story about PwC’s diversity and inclusion program ., William Angliss Institute, , an Education employer. Paul Kloppenborg a manager of Learning and Information Services, hired Daniel Giddens as a Liaison Librarian. Daniel has Cerebral Palsy. As Paul says, Daniel is ‘breaking down some of the stereotypes of what people with disability can and can’t do’. Learn more about Paul and Daniel . Ebru Dogan, a Diversity and Inclusion Advisor at, Gold Coast University Hospital, , says that hiring people with disabilities 'brings a diversity of thought that is invaluable'. Read a story about Gold Coast University Hospital . Food service employer, Compass Group Australia, – Kathy Scott, Communications Manager, says, ‘In the past year, we’ve employed 77 people with that identify as having disability, and over that time we’ve had a 94% retention rate’. Read the success story of one of their employees with disability, Kevin Green ., What the research says about employer attitudes, Research by the Australian Government shows most Australian employers are open to hiring people with disability. This is a good sign, but there is room for improvement. Most employers in the research knew the value or workers with disabilities. But many weren’t sure how to practically employ people with disabilities., Barriers to employment, “The research told us that businesses want more help to transition from ‘willing’ to ‘hiring.’” What stopped employers from hiring people with disability? Of the employers who were open to hiring people with disability: 44% are worried about integrating people with disability into the workforce 37% were unaware of disability employment, they saw hiring a person with disability as 'a step into the…, Attitudes by industry, The research found these industries are most open to hiring people with disability: professional and financial services retail, accommodation and food services social, healthcare and education services. Most businesses in these industries believed it is important to include people with disability. Their workplace should reflect the community’s diversity. That included 83% of businesses in the…, Support for employers, A range of supports are available to help you employ people with disability. Contact a JobAccess Adviser for advice to get started, explore the resources on our website, or attend a free seminar for employers . You may qualify for funding through the Employment Assistance Fund (EAF). It can cover costs for workplace changes, equipment and services to support an employee with disability. For all…
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Get advice on creating disability strategies, action plans and employee support plans for a diverse and fair workplace. You can also join one of our free information sessions for employers.
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The City of Casey is home to more than 413,000 people. It is one of the largest and fastest growing cities in Victoria. To reflect the community it serves, the City looked at increasing disability representation in its workforce. To achieve this, the City partnered with the National Disability Recruitment Coordinator (NDRC) . The NDRC is JobAccess' employer engagement service. It partners with…, Being inclusive with good practice, Christina Harbis, , the Talent Acquisition Advisor at the City of Casey, says finding areas for improvement is important for inclusion. “We aimed to assess our inclusive practices, particularly in the recruitment process. We wanted to identify gaps and areas for improvement. Our goal was to ensure we are as inclusive as possible when attracting, recruiting, and onboarding new staff,” Christina says. During their…, Concrete, positive, and long-term changes, Christina says that NDRC’s support helped the City identify gaps in their recruitment practices. It also provided them with actionable insights to improve. The NDRC’s support has influenced our long-term strategies for fostering a more accessible workplace., Christina Harbis, Talent Acquisition Advisor City of Casey “Through NDRC’s detailed review, we gained a clearer understanding of how to remove barriers and better support candidates with disability. This has led to changes in our processes. They now ensure a more inclusive experience from recruitment through to onboarding. The NDRC’s support has influenced our long-term strategies for fostering a more accessible…, Are you looking to build a disability-confident workplace? Talk to the experts. , The National Disability Recruitment Coordinator (NDRC) partners with employers to develop inclusive workplace policies. They also advise on good practice to support people with disability. The NDRC also provides a vacancy distribution service to employers. It offers other services too. These include workplace training and employer seminars on disability awareness. Call us at 1800 464 800 to…
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West Australian manufacturing company PROK produces conveyor components. These products are used by a range of companies in the mining and engineering industries. PROK values workforce diversity. It recognises that different thinking and skills within the team can lead to developing unique products and services. PROK partnered with the National Disability Recruitment Coordinator (NDRC) to boost…, Drive to build a disability-confident culture, Rory Morrison, , PROK’s Indirect Purchasing Manager, says that improving inclusion was key to partnering with the NDRC. “We wanted to improve accessibility for people with disability, be more inclusive, and boost community engagement.” Rory recalls they came across JobAccess and NDRC through a web search. “Our objectives were to learn and apply meaningful strategies and increase our recruitment reach.” An NDRC…, Making a sustainable impact, As part of partnership, the NDRC Adviser reviewed PROK’s recruitment processes to provide advice on best practices. The NDRC also delivered disability awareness training, which started important conversations about disability between the team. The training focused on disability employment basics, including inclusive language, and making reasonable adjustments. Rory reflects, “The disability…, Wade Guelfi, General Manager, PROK The partnership supported PROK’s approach to attract, hire, and retain people with disability. “It helped remove some stigmas and fears. It has armed us with knowledge. We are now aware of pathways and manyassistance programs that are in place. We have also identified some roles that could be performed with workplace adjustments,” Rory shares. Rory says the strong buy-in…, Are you looking to build a disability-confident workplace? Talk to the experts., The National Disability Recruitment Coordinator (NDRC) partners with employers to develop inclusive workplace policies. They also advise on good practice to support people with disability. The NDRC also provides a vacancy distribution service to employers. It offers other services too. These include workplace training and employer seminars on disability awareness. Call us at, 1800 464 800, to connect with the NDRC. You can also submit an online enquiry form through the JobAccess website .
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Legal Aid NSW has received support from JobAccess to implement workplace adjustments for their employees with disability. The goal is to improve their hiring process and policies related to disability employment. Legal Aid NSW partnered with the National Disability Recruitment Coordinator (NDRC) - a service by JobAccess that helps employers. The partnership raised awareness about challenges…, Legal Aid NSW takes disability employment strategy to the next level, Legal Aid NSW is an independent government agency that runs across the state. It offers free legal advice to disadvantaged people. Legal Aid NSW has been working with JobAccess for some time, getting support with implementing workplace adjustments and funding through the Employment Assistance Fund. This support has helped Legal Aid NSW create a more inclusive and accessible workplace for their…, Rania Saab, , Senior Project Officer, Strategy and Inclusion, Human Resources at Legal Aid NSW highlights their commitment to improve disability representation in the workplace. “We wanted to improve our recruitment processes, policies and practices around disability employment, inclusion and access. We were also hoping to strengthen our HR team’s disability employment capability.”, Increasing confidence to connect with people with disability, An NDRC Adviser worked with Rania and the team at the Legal Aid. Rania recalled “As a first step, the NDRC Adviser did an extensive review of our employment process.” The review helped the NDRC team understand Legal Aid NSW’s current employment practices to identify any barriers and offer good practice suggestions. The NDRC provided us extensive guidance and advice to make sure that a disability…, Rania Saab, Senior Project Officer, Strategy and Inclusion Legal Aid NSW “The NDRC Adviser provided a tailored and comprehensive report to improve our end-to-end recruitment process.” said Rania. After receiving the report, Legal Aid NSW began to implement the recommendations to create a more inclusive recruitment and induction process. “The NDRC Adviser provided us extensive guidance and advice to make…, Support from experts with lived experience, JobAccess is run by people with disability, for people with disability. The team listens, advises and supports by keeping the individual and employer in focus. The tailored guidance provided by Claudia helped Legal Aid NSW include additional, strategic goals to its Disability Inclusion Action Plan. It was so beneficial to work with an NDRC Adviser with lived experience of disability, and to have…, Rania Saab, Senior Project Officer, Strategy and Inclusion Legal Aid NSW “Moving forward, our team will use the JobAccess vacancy distribution more to tap into a diverse talent pool and employ more people with disability in the workplace,” “It was so beneficial to work with an NDRC Adviser with lived experience of disability, and to have that resource that we could tap into with any questions we had,”…, Are you looking to build a disability-confident workplace? Talk to the experts., The National Disability Recruitment Coordinator (NDRC) partners with employers. The team works with employers to develop inclusive workplace policies that support disability employment. The NDRC also provides a vacancy distribution service to employers. Call JobAccess at, 1800 464 800, to connect with the NDRC. You can also submit an online enquiry form through the JobAccess website .
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A disability action plan shows your support for customers and employees with disabilities. It’s a positive step for your organisation. It also shows how you meet the, Disability Discrimination Act 1992, . , What is a disability action plan?, A disability action plan lists the ways that your organisation: is accessible to people with disability doesn’t discriminate against people with disability. It covers the accessibility of your organisation’s goods, services and buildings, like bathrooms. It can also include your employment policies and practices. Under the, Disability Discrimination Act 1992, your action plan doesn’t have to cover these things. But including employment policies in the plan shows your commitment to supporting employees with disabilities. This can, in turn, give employees with disabilities confidence in your support. , Getting started, The Register of Disability Discrimination Act Action Plans has examples of disability action plans from various sized organisations. For information on creating a disability action plan, see the Australian Human Rights Commission page, Developing an effective DDA Action Plan .
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The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is an essential public service for all Australians and plays a crucial role in delivering services that reflect and contribute to Australian society, culture and identity. The ABC is genuinely committed to representing the diverse community it serves – both in the profile of its staff and the content it creates. This means accurately representing…, ABC sets goals to drive measurable outcomes, ABC’s Diversity and Inclusion Recruitment Adviser,, Sheena B, , said the organisation first learned about the NDRC during a webinar about workplace adjustments. ABC signed up for the partnership with a range of goals in mind. “We were hoping to assess how we could improve accessibility for people with disability applying to our jobs. We also wanted to increase our attraction and inclusion of people with disability through the recruitment process by…, A 200% boost in applications from candidates with disability, NDRC Professional Adviser, Rob Crestani, got straight to work, helping Sheena and the team increase their disability confidence. This included carrying out a recruitment review, disability awareness training and engagement with disability employment services. “The recruitment review really helped us highlight recommendations to improve and enhance our recruitment process, whilst disability awareness training helped engage our ABC staff…, NDRC support paves the way for long-term changes, The support from JobAccess has helped ABC make lasting changes, according to Sheena. The disability confidence gained from the partnership has allowed the broadcaster to take meaningful and sustainable long-term steps to ensure its workplace remains disability-inclusive and accessible. “The partnership was a valued source of advice and guidance for a number of successfully launched initiatives,…
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