A DIRC21 Solo Talk
Ready, Willing & ABLE: Why it Pays to Hire People w/ Disabilities
Sara Hart Weir
In 2020, companies from Main Street to Wall Street significantly expanded their efforts to recruit, hire and retain a more diverse workforce, as part of a national conversation on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). However, most companies overlooking the largest unemployed segment of the U.S population – people with disabilities. According to recent data, the employment gap between people with and without disabilities is staggering – only 19% of people with disabilities were in the workforce, compared to 66% of people without a disability. This session will address: how we skill up the next generation of youth with disabilities, what employers can do to rethink recruitment, retention and rewards for a more inclusive workplace; and what policymakers can do to modernize the federal/state structures to better Include people with disabilities.
