Diversity: Raising Awareness for Employees With Disabilities

This week, you may see some of your coworkers stationed in employee areas at different locations throughout the system. That’s because October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) and members of the Accessibility Advocates Employee Resource Group (ERG) want to share information with you about the month and its importance.

They will have informative flyers on hand and be happy to chat about NDEAM in action at our organization, as they are set up at these locations:

• CASB
• CFMH
• CNRV
• CRBH
• CRMH
• TSG (Kimball Avenue)

NDEAM is recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor each October to commemorate the many contributions of people with disabilities to America's workplaces and economy. It began in 1945 when Congress enacted a law declaring the first week in October each year as "National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week."

However, in 1962, the word "physically" was removed to acknowledge the employment needs and contributions of individuals with all types of disabilities. And then in 1988, Congress expanded the week to a month, changing the name to National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

This year’s theme is “America’s Recovery: Powered by Inclusion,"  which signifies the importance of ensuring that people with disabilities have full access to employment and community involvement during the national recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh says of employees with disabilities, "Their contributions have historically been vital to our nation’s success and are more important today than ever. We must build an economy that fully includes the talent and drive of those with disabilities.”

The Accessibility Advocates ERG is doing their part to raise awareness about NDEAM because like all of our employees, the contributions of our employees with disabilities are significant to our workplace. In addition, employees can experience many types of disabilities that may present obstacles in their jobs, but helping them overcome those obstacles and tap into our organization's capabilities further enhances their contributions.

“The term ‘disability’ is often thought of in the physical sense,” says Brent Brewer, Interactive Patient System Manager and Accessibility Advocates ERG member. “People may need accommodations for a variety of reasons, including chronic illnesses, and we want to help those employees access the organization’s capabilities, too.”

Just as NDEAM has become more encompassing over the years, the Accessibility Advocates ERG (formerly Disability Advocates) recently changed their name and purpose to reflect a broader focus that can help more employees. Their new purpose is to promote an inclusive physical, mental, social and digital work environment for both Carilion employees and the community members they serve.

Accessibility Advocates are one of five ERGs at Carilion—each has a different focus and is comprised of a group of employees brought together to share their passion for diversity and inclusion to help the organization achieve its goals.

For more information about our ERGs and for an ERG application, see this previous article and go to the Diversity & Inclusion hub.

If you have questions, contact the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion:

• Dr. NL Bishop - nlbishop@carilionclinic.org
• Briana Apgar - blapgar@carilionclinic.org