On this important episode of Community Matters Nicky talks with Karen Burdett, CEO of Greenacres Disability Services, and dives into the benefits of employment inclusion and the challenges we face today as a result of Australia not keeping pace with the OECD levels of employment for people with disability. Just reaching OECD averages on disability employment would see 117,000 people with disability employed and $11.9 billion in value to the GDP of the country.

Karen articulates the benefits for employers of becoming more inclusive referring to studies that demonstrate employers who do embrace disability inclusion enjoy better profits, greater innovation and a range of cultural benefits for their workplaces.

As Karen explains the reality is that employing a person with disability can incur additional costs in relation to things like training needs, workplace adaptations and modifications and refers to existing programs that are a good place to start but that more investment is needed. Karen would like to see an increase in NDIS participants having employment put into their plan with direct employment supports for individuals being funded at a much higher level. Karen explains how more emphasis is needed on the importance of the expectations and assumptions of achieving employment for people with disability if we are to engage people with significant disability in mainstream settings. Karen and Nicky also dive into the Big Idea of a “Workforce Disability Inclusion Act” to shift the dial on employment rates for people with disability through requirements to report on rates of disability employment within organisations and the public sector. Otherwise, as Karen explains, “Unless you have that assisting policy-based piece as well it’s just a conversation, it goes on the goodness of people’s hearts.”

Karen also talks about the innovative programs in the Illawarra right now to integrate people with disability into mainstream open employment settings and the work that organisations like Greenacres are doing to use their disability employment expertise to effectively partner with local employers to support people with disability into mainstream workplace settings.

Resources and Links:

• Find out more about the Illawarra Disability Alliance here: https://www.illawarradisabilityalliance.org/

• Find out more about Greenacres here: https://www.greenacres.net.au/