Who gets to work? Employment Progress for People with Disabilities in Canada

The Accessible Canada Act (ACA) sets a goal of a barrier-free Canada by 2040. It mandates federally regulated organizations in Canada to engage with people with disabilities and create a plan and report annually on progress to remove the barriers in their organizations in 7 areas: built environment, employment, information and communications technology (ICT), communications other than ICT, programs and services, procurement and transportation. Over the past year, the Chief Accessibility Officer has focused attention on the employment priority, noting that progress in this area reflects progress overall. She has engaged widely on this topic, and her team has conducted research into the state of employment for people with disabilities in Canada, as well as promising practices, and the most persistent barriers. This chat will delve into some of what the CAO has observed as the biggest barriers to employment for PwDs and examples of emerging best practices.