The mainstreaming of disability in socially responsible companies.

| Albert Vilario Alonso | LinkedIn

1/12/15 19:38

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The mainstreaming of disability in socially

responsible companies.
Dec 1, 2015

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Note: This article was first published in spanish and can be found here.
The group of people with disabilities is one of the groups at risk of exclusion with
more difficulties in gaining access to employment and also one of those with a
steeper wage gap.
In some of the articles of my blog I have treated before the delicate situation of
people with disabilities (PWD hereinafter) have in forming part of the regular
labor market. An ordinary labor market outside organizations such as Special
Employment Centres, which already is complicated for people currently without
any disability in Spain.
The Special Employment Centres are part of the so-called protected
employment and are, or rather should be, a mechanism of transition to the

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The mainstreaming of disability in socially responsible companies. | Albert Vilario Alonso | LinkedIn

1/12/15 19:38

regular labor market for PWD but often do not fulfill this function, becoming
finalist resources themselves by various reasons that we should discuss in another
article.
Some causes such as failure to comply the existing laws for over 30 years,
invisibility in the media, the overprotective families, social prejudice, lack of
universal accessibility or double discrimination because of disability and
belonging to the female gender, are those that make more difficult the labor
integration of this group of people in all kinds of organizations.
Why companies must integrate people with disabilities?
The integration of PWDs in companies is absolutely necessary and has not to be
seen as social action or philanthropy but must be a clear commitment to the
special skills and abilities of this group. This integration has to be seen, like any
other group at risk of social or labor exclusion for whatever reason, within the
political diversity of companies and applied at all levels of the organizations in a
transversal manner. If the mere purpose of acting in a socially responsible
manner is not enough for the most reluctant or skeptical organizations managers,
here we can see 10 reasons for managers to integrate disabled people on their
teams. Wanting greater loyalty of customers and employees, having increased
demand for products and services, accessing to potential customers with
purchasing power and specific needs or making the company positively apart
from the competition, can certainly be the reasons to pass from idea to action.
How to achieve this integration?
The BEQUAL certification, promoted by the CERMI and the ONCE Foundation,
is a complete model structured into 7 categories, 19 indicators and 69 sources
of verification that enables organizations to demonstrate their commitment to
the social integration of PWD. It is this model that I will use as a base to
describe the general points in which we have to influence and some concrete
actions that must be done in order to become a socially responsible organization
with the disability.
The first point to achieve integration is extremely important and is the
Management commitment to that goal, because without it it will not be
possible to make any real and serious progress. The management strategy of the
organization has to declare through its statutes and procedures equal

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The mainstreaming of disability in socially responsible companies. | Albert Vilario Alonso | LinkedIn

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opportunities, non-discrimination of PWD and universal accessibility. Such a

strategy should have performance indicators, a work plan for achieving them and
to conduct performance assessments. Also, the Management should include in its
strategy of engagement and dialogue all the representative bodies and groups in
the disability sector and consider and implement appropriate recommendations.
In the management of Human Resources, is obvious and essential the
compliance with the spanish General Law on rights of persons with disabilities
and their social inclusion, published on December 3, 2013, through the job
reservation fee for these people or, where appropriate, through the
implementation of alternative measures by Special Employment Centres and/or
grants. Human Resources procedures should take into account people with
disabilities in regard to recruitment, selection, hiring, promotion, training and
adaptation and adjustment of jobs, and equal salaries and opportunities. It will
also be needed to sensitize and educate the workforce on disability.
Another very important point and often given fulfilled especially in companies
with modern facilities is the accessibility. In addition to the removal of
architectural barriers to enable full accessibility in ambulation of PWD, the
special needs of the group in terms of protocols and evacuation procedures,
availability of accessible parking spaces, bathrooms, etc. must be adressed. No
less necessary is that not only the internal communication channels of the
company are accessible, but must also be so that external communication with
customers, suppliers and partners outside the organization is facilitated.
When it comes to suppliers of the company, a responsible purchasing must be
made, through policies and criteria adopted in the procurement processes with
suppliers and subcontractors relating to the employment of PWD. This includes
the purchase of goods or services to Special Employment Centres beyond
compliance of the aforementioned Law or have suppliers that also meet this
specific requirement.
With regard to the customer, the organization must have trained staff and
systems to attend the PWD, it must provide universal accessibility into their
products and services, and distribution and selling strategies of their products or
services must consider accessibility by the customer or user. Also, the company
can go a step further and develop and market products and services to meet
specific needs of PWDs.

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If the company makes any social action it should include disability in their
specific initiatives, conducting proceedings to the group of PWD or that have an
impact on it. It also should encourage and facilitate employee volunteering in
advocacy, and knowledge and dissemination of issues of inclusion and disability
management. Organized and promotional events can also be made, disseminating
and collecting funds for charitable initiatives in this area.
Finally, in the field of corporate communication, the company has to make
an external communication that takes into account PWD, prioritizing accessible
communication channels, taking PWD within the design team and monitoring of
the communication policy (or where appropriate, in consultation with PWD), and
showing a positive image of PWDs in messages and advertising. As a culmination
of everything mentioned in this article, it would be absurd that after these actions
they were not communicated to the stakeholders, so it is essential that the report
on Corporate Social Responsibility of the company note the PWD, including all
the policies, initiatives, donations, products and services developed that take into
account the inclusion and disability management, etc.
When talking about the CSR report we should highlight the initiative of the
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), in collaboration with the ONCE Foundation,
that made a publication whose purpose is to "create a practical tool to help
organizations to publicly disclose their commitment to respect and promote the
rights of PWD". Until future editions of the GRI Guide, this publication will serve

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