After three months, we’re still in the middle of this virus crisis, but there’s a little more clarity about which of the many approaches have been successful in helping people deal with it, and why. And this has long-term implications for the disabled, that I hope we will remember and use after this crisis has eased.
One that has been pointed out in a couple diaries (here, and here) is that changes to accessibility, particularly around work, have been made after years of telling the disabled community that it was “impossible” or “too expensive”… but now that the general population needs the adjustments, it’s suddenly do-able. Actions like work from home, distance learning, tele-medicine and even virtual tours of museums and public spaces are work-arounds requested by some disabled people that suddenly are commonplace.
Other issues, like affordable healthcare not tied to job, have been more frequently in the news. Even the discussion about universal income may reduce some of the stigma associated with disability income.
Some of us are already wondering: how do we keep these benefits once the majority of America doesn’t need them?
And not just America — our fellows in the UK are also discussing this.
disabilityhorizons.com/…
An economic recovery plan that includes disabled people
An economic revival plan from coronavirus offers more than the chance to right wrongs. It should deliver an inclusive economy with new rights and new opportunities.
The opportunity for disabled people to start businesses, initiate tech startup and create new markets must become the new normal.
The big question is: How do we advocate for continuation of these accessibility methods?
Disability activists are doing what they can. One recent article describes a free training program for HR managers, to help promote inclusion and accessibility in the workplace:
www.businesswire.com/…
New, Free HR Training Program Closes Disability Inclusion Gap in the Workplace
ALEXANDRIA, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The SHRM Foundation and Workplace Initiative by Understood today announced the availability of a new, free training program focused on helping businesses drive disability inclusion in the workplace.
...The Employing Abilities @Work Certificate is designed for human resources professionals and hiring managers. With eLearning content provided by the Workplace Initiative by Understood, the training program dispels myths and highlights opportunities to hire, retain, develop, and advance employees with disabilities in the workplace.
Training program participants will advance through 12 micro-learning modules that define concrete steps to foster inclusion at work and outlines the business benefits of investing in disability inclusion programs. Courses focus on how to welcome and support employees with disabilities in the workplace.
And a recent report by Accenture called “Getting to Equal” takes a look at the benefits of corporations increasing their hiring of workers with disabilities:
www.accenture.com/…
New research from Accenture, in partnership with Disability:IN and the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), reveals that companies that embrace best practices for employing and supporting more persons with disabilities in their workforce have outperformed their peers.In large part, companies haven’t leveraged the talents of persons with disabilities for three reasons:
• A lack of understanding of the scope of the talent available;
• A lack of understanding of the potential benefits; and
• Misconceptions about the cost versus the ROI of disability inclusion
While a lot of it seems to be “enlightened self interest” at best (for example: “A Market Worth Targeting - The U.S. Office of Disability Employment Policy categorizes persons with disabilities as the third-largest market segment in the U.S., after Hispanics and African-Americans. The discretionary income for working-age persons with disabilities is $21 billion—greater than that of the African-American and Hispanic segments combined”) the report seems to be sincerely pushing for inclusion and accessibility, albeit using a self-interest framework more likely to win over CEOs, finance officers and HR managers:
Moreover, Disability Inclusion Champions were, on average, two times more likely to outperform their peers in terms of total shareholder returns compared with the rest of the sample.
It’s not just in the workplace that recent changes have revealed how “possible” lifestyle accommodations are. The huge increase in virtual access to medicine, learning and touring may open the door to discussion about ways to include those who are restricted to home. What will it take for business and educational facilities to continue this access? This would be a good time to at least sow the seeds of possibility.
Another issue that I’ve been pondering is whether there’s a way to use the lock-down situation to help the more heedless citizens have empathy for those who are chronically “locked down” — is there a way to parlay the experience into something that makes disabled Americans more visible to their fellows? Here’s an article from Forbes that looks at that.
www.forbes.com/…
Pandemic Is A Disability For All
In the blink of an eye, the world has a disability. Its name is quarantine (or shelter in place, or lockdown). Its cause is contagion. Its symptoms: fear for personal safety; helplessness; isolation; loss of control; anger at arbitrary decisions made for you; identity theft; self-doubt; dependence.
These are the very real feelings that people worldwide are working through today while coming to grips with the condition of sheltering in place that is the only sane response to the novel coronavirus outbreak. For people with disabilities, however, these feelings are longtime companions that we continually work through in private and public cycles of advancement and setback and advancement. Welcome to our world, where waiting for a cure is not an option and survival can hinge on learning how to move forward while living with something that gives no quarter.
More people suddenly are aware of their elderly or shut-in neighbors, offering to get groceries or run errands. Now many articles rave about about the small but very needed actions that we can take to help each other; will this awareness last beyond COVID-19?
One of the biggest challenges to those of us without enough energy, strength, or pain-free-ness to push for awareness is that we are often out of sight/out of mind. But now the whole world is experiencing some of the challenges we face — maybe it would take less at this moment to drive home the point that we, too, should be included in daily society? And maybe including us wouldn’t take as much (money, time, effort) as “wisdom” says it would.