Author: Dean Askin

There are over 1.2 million employer businesses in Canada. And almost 98% of them are small businesses, which employ about 5.7 million people. But surveys have shown that over half the small businesses in Canada have never hired someone who has a disability. They’ve never made the disability-inclusive hiring journey. In Episode 25 — the…

If you’ve ever looked for a stock photo portraying disability to use in a blog post or on a website page, you might find yourself thinking they all look the same; they all look contrived; and they don’t authentically portray disability in all its diversity. How disability is broadly viewed and perceived, can depend on…

In part two of our series on The State of Accessibility in Canada, we go from the bird’s-eye view to a closer look at accessibility — in branding, marketing, advertising and social media content created by businesses in Canada. This is an important conversation to have, because the accessibility of content for everyone can affect…

Community Living Ontario and the Ontario Disability Employment Network (ODEN) have published Tangled in Red Tape, a report showing the extent to which Ontario’s Employment Services Transformation has been impacted by underfunding and overwhelming administrative burdens. It has been five years since the provincial government announced its plan to make Ontario’s employment service system “more efficient,…

Accessibility is a single word that can have a lot of impact. Every day in Canada, indeed across North America and in countries around the world, many people — especially people who have a disability — face challenges in their daily lives because the built environment we all live in, generally isn’t all that accessible….

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There are more than 200 universities, and more than 200 colleges and institutes in Canada. Certainly no lack of choice for young people looking to pursue post-secondary education. But there’s a problem on campuses across this country. It’s one affecting students, staff and faculty alike — a lack of accessibility and disability inclusion. Statistics show…

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Filed under Inclusive Hiring, Youth Success, Youth Success Strategy Reading time: 2 minutes | Posted by Dean Askin Youth who have a disability face significant barriers and discrimination in seeking both the experiences needed to develop important skills and in obtaining paid employment. Common myths can make it difficult for these youth to achieve their…

Filed under: Inclusive Hiring, Youth Success, Youth Success Strategy Reading time: 6:30 | Posted by Dr. Jennifer Crowson, PhD Photography courtesy Hilary Gauld | One for the Wall Photography and Canadian Down Syndrome Society Did you know that in 2022, 27% of Canadians aged 15 and older had at least one disability? That amounts to…

Ableism. It happens in workplaces, in communities and in society in general, every day. Maybe you have lived experience facing it. Or maybe you’ve practised it, without consciously realizing it. In this episode, we get a perspective on disrupting ableism in the workplace: Why it’s happening, its many forms, its impact and what can, and…

In our Season 5 opener, the two guests who were with us on our 2023 season opener, are back to give us an update on year one of the Inclusive Design for Employment Access initiative, or IDEA for short. A quick recap: IDEA is a six-year research project being done with $9 million of federal…