REGINA - There’s no event quite like this one during National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) in Canada. On Thursday, October 19, the fourth annual Light It Up! For NDEAM will shine a nationwide light on the many ways people who have a disability contribute to businesses and communities across Canada, and how they help companies be successful and competitive.
“Myths and misconceptions about disability linger. There’s still a lack of disability awareness, and attitudes stemming from this hinder full inclusion. Light It Up! For NDEAM encourages businesses to embrace disability inclusion, and be more disability aware and confident,” emphasizes Jeannette Campbell, CEO of the Ontario Disability Employment Network (ODEN).
Businesses should recognize that disability inclusion isn’t just a matter of compliance with national and provincial human rights legislation, or a social responsibility. It’s a strategic business imperative that can drive growth, innovation and competitive advantage, she said.
“Disability inclusion has to be tied to your broader business objectives and company mission, whether you’re running a small, five-person business or a national corporation with many locations and employees.”
One two-year study found that inclusive, high-performing companies are up to eight times stronger at innovation, customer service and employee retention. Another report found, being disability inclusive makes a business six times more likely to be innovative, agile and capable of responding quickly to opportunities and change. Being disability inclusive also helps companies expand their markets and reach new customers. Currently, 6.2 million Canadians have a disability, or about 22 per cent of the population. By around 2035, that number is expected to reach 25 per cent as the population ages. It means the disability consumer market is growing.
Surveys have also shown that consumers expect businesses to be disability inclusive. A study by the Angus Reid Institute and The Rick Hansen Foundation found, 62 per cent of Canadians are more likely to do business with a company that has specific policies supporting employees who have a disability.
“Light It Up! For NDEAM helps start conversations about all of this. It’s much more than a one-night, co-ordinated lighting event,” Campbell notes.
“It's a movement that sparks ongoing engagement and conversation about disability-inclusive hiring between job seekers, families, community agencies, businesses and local governments, all over Canada. I think the shear amount of involvement in Light It Up! For NDEAM every year, is a testament to that.”
“The impact this event is having, is more than we ever imagined when ODEN started Light It Up! For NDEAM,” Campbell adds. “The conversation it starts is having a lasting effect that can affect change, which is vital. Because access to employment is still a major barrier for people who have a disability.”
Over 360 structures in more than 100 communities across all 10 provinces and the Northwest Territories — office buildings, businesses, government buildings, bridges, municipal signs, town and city halls; public spaces and world-famous Canadian landmarks across the nation — will be specially illuminated in this annual coordinated event held the third Thursday of every October.
In Saskatchewan, 61 locations in 15 cities and towns including Saskatoon, Regina, Estevan, Moose Jaw, Lloydminster, Yorkton, North Battleford and Waldheim will be lit for Light It Up! For NDEAM next Thursday. They include city halls in Estevan, Regina and Moose Jaw; Chamber of Commerce offices Yorkton and Swift Current, and the Swift Current Broncos Hockey Club. In Swift Current, 17 businesses are participating in Light It Up! For NDEAM 2023.
The federal government recognizes the significance and importance of Light It Up! For NDEAM, and is participating in the event for the third year in a row.
Public Services and Procurement Canada is lighting up over 30 federal buildings across the country. They include two RCMP Division Headquarters, in Charlottetown and Vancouver; the Environment Canada building in Toronto; Canada Place in Edmonton; Government of Canada buildings in Ottawa, Gatineau, QC and Yellowknife; the Joseph R. Smallwood Building in Corner Brook, NL; the John Cabot Building in St. John’s; and P.L. James Place in Victoria.
Some provincial governments also participate in Light It Up! For NDEAM. The Manitoba Legislature in Winnipeg, is illuminating again this year. And back for another year, the Government of Ontario is illuminating five provincial buildings in Toronto, Guelph, Peterborough, Orillia and St. Catharines.
For the first time, one of Canada’s international bridges is participating in the event. The Seaway International Bridge Pier will be illuminated purple and blue. The bridge links Cornwall, ON with Massena, NY.
With one week to the event, the list of participating locations is still growing. “The more the involvement in Light It Up! For NDEAM, the greater the impact,” adds Campbell.
Light It Up! For NDEAM is the flagship event of ODEN’s annual National Disability Employment Awareness Month campaign. While ODEN leads the event, it happens through collaboration with the Canadian Association for Supported Employment, MentorAbility Canada, Jobs Ability Canada and many community-based disability employment service providers across the country.
“In 2023, there’s more conversation about disability inclusion than ever before, and it’s good to see this happening. But there’s still a lot of education about disability inclusion to be done in communities everywhere. We’re collaborating on a local, provincial and national level to create awareness that disability needs to be part of the diversity, equity and inclusion business conversation. Too often it gets left out,” Campbell said.
She points out, “Whether you’re participating for the fourth or the first time, getting involved in Light It Up! For NDEAM is a great starting point. It can be a business’s first learning step on the disability-inclusive hiring journey. Then, after the night’s over, let's keep the conversation going with the local employment service providers who are there to help businesses make that journey a successful one.”
ODEN is encouraging people in communities participating in Light It Up! For NDEAM, to photograph illuminated structures and post images on LinkedIn, Facebook and X (formerly Twitter). The social media hashtags for Light It Up! For NDEAM are: #LightItUpFor NDEAM, #LightItUpForDEAM and #EngageTalent.
