S3E2 - Blaisin' Access 2 Employment for People with Disabilities

This is the Blaisin’n Access Podcast for Tuesday, September 19. I’m Blaise Bryant. Today’s story shines a light on employment for people with disabilities. A survey conducted by Source America said 93-percent of respondents want the government and private sector to do more to level the playing field. The poll, consisting of 1,000 Americans with and without disabilities encourages employers to value the talents and skills of people with disabilities, as part of diversity, equity, and intersectionality or DEI. With National Disability Employment Awareness Month starting October 1, Source America’s survey encourages both the public and private sector to do more. How do disabilities impact career paths? Some 57-percent of disabled Americans said having a disability limited their options. 43-percent feel disabled people are not given a fair shot at employment or being promoted. Discrimination during job interviews is another hurdle. 58-percent of disabled Americans reported they faced some form of discrimination. This compares to 26-percent of non-disabled Americans who faced discrimination. Nearly 60-percent of people with disabilities surveyed left their job because of discrimination. The survey was conducted from July 14-21 of 2023. The survey link is in the news story which you can find in the show notes.   Considering roughly 70-percent of people with disabilities are unemployed the big question is how do we actually reduce this horrifically high number? While surveys and conversation are a good foundational start it’s all lip service without action. A few weeks ago I had a chat with a couple of Human Resources professionals after making a LinkedIn post about the flaws of DEI. If you’re not incorporating disability in all aspects of a company you’re doing an injustice to DEI. The main reason why I’m doing this podcast is because we need to change the attitudinal narrative around disability. It’s up to us as disabled people, along with non-disabled allies to lead the change we want to see. Nothing about us without us!   If you have a story you’d like me to highlight on the show send it to me at [email protected]. Tell your friends about the Blaisin’ Access Podcast and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform. I’d be grateful if you left a rating and review. Tune in for more disability news tomorrow. I’m Blaise Bryant. You are listening to the Blaisin’ Access Podcast. Have a great day!   News story: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/sourceamerica-employment-inclusion-survey-reveals-133000907.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAJLa7qr7lz4PqOo6zlc65Kln8dZ1kJMK4EW50MIrefV12N1J6zncRoXiPxNkWISX9NFrFB7bq0eWf0pblNvKF5BSFfJbSNdQ6vpTrDU9pNRBXbuXUTq6i3YBq3x4QQwiWSLm5p9cz8XFf1KKv_xZW5nDNrHikKG6nlGxfSfNNYkb Support Blaisin' Access Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/blaisin-access-podcast