Description

About this event

BACKGROUND:

People with disabilities (PWD) are particularly under-represented in the natural resources sector, including in Newfoundland and Labrador (NL). Addressing this challenge is both an opportunity for the sector and a legal and social requirement of doing business. This project is inspired by existing research documenting the huge costs to industry and society, the social and environmental origins of exclusion, and the marginalization of PWD within this and other sectors.

This is the first of two roundtable discussions with industry stakeholders.

An introductory Inclusion Roundtable with Memorial researchers, InclusionNL, and representatives from several NL mining, oil and gas, and renewable energy employers. This initial roundtable will map out the policy, research and practice landscape around accessibility and inclusion in these sectors. There will also be a panel focused on accessibility in the workplace and federal & provincial accessibility legislation.

A follow-up Inclusion Roundtable will be held with the same stakeholders to share findings and resources identified in the scoping review, discuss lessons learned and inform the design of future NL and industry-specific resources.

POTENTIAL IMPACT:

This collaborative research builds on and extends research-community collaborations developed through the NL Cluster of the Centre for Research on Work Disability Policy and will support future engagement by InclusionNL with natural resources companies and lay the foundation for future research collaborations.

Findings from this project will provide much needed insights to inform the development of resources designed specifically for these industry sectors to help workplace parties become disability confident, remove barriers to inclusion, and increase their workplace accessibility.

These insights will help provide employers and OHS decision makers with accessible and timely resources designed to make relevant information available and accessible for use in practice, planning, and policymaking.