Colleen Starkloff and David Newburger presented the 10 Best Practices in Disability Hiring to employers and allied professionals on December 10. This was done in partnership with the St. Louis Regional Chamber. The two -hour, interactive breakfast meeting was attended by 20 people who formed teams of five at tables across the room.

Tom Chulick, President of the St. Louis Regional Chamber, opened the event with remarks affirming that “It’s important for people with disabilities to secure employment to avoid a life of poverty, but it’s also an important issue to the region.”  He went on to explain that “More employed people means more income to put back into the regional economy through purchases of homes, autos, goods and services.  Both individuals and businesses benefit when people in the region are in the workforce.”

SDI’s Workplace Advisors offered two questions to each of the teams. These questions were directly related to the 10 Best Practices in Disability Hiring. The teams then spent about 30 minutes offering their own experiences with specific issues in disability hiring.

Issues included job descriptions that inadvertently exclude people with disabilities, when people with disabilities should disclose this to their employer, website and marketing representation, and much more. Volunteer table moderators kept participants focused on the questions and injected personal anecdotes about being an employed person with a disability.

After the teams had group discussions, Colleen and David reviewed each table’s discussion and paired them with a best practice. Many participants who attended had experiences with some of the questions and offered workable solutions to the group.

The event concluded with positive feedback was received.  One participant noted, Information is exceptional and lots of information was given in a short time period.”

“We are thrilled that Tom Chulick and the St. Louis Regional Chamber chose to partner with us on this training event. It speaks to the importance of disability as a pillar of diversity that is to be recognized and included in the policies and cultures of every company in St. Louis and beyond,” said David Newburger, SDI Workplace Advisor’s Lead Consultant.

We look forward to expanding this event and bringing more awareness to employers and business owners about changes they can make to welcome and hire people with disabilities.