by Tova Sherman
October is Disability Employment Awareness Month (DEAM). In Nova Scotia, nearly 38% of our population lives with a disability, the highest provincial rate in Canada. When we look at those numbers through an intersectional lens, factoring in race, gender, and economic background, the barriers to finding meaningful work multiply fast.
Yet, when I connect with fellow business leaders across the province, the conversation often stalls. People are anxious. They are terrified of saying the wrong thing, handling an accommodation incorrectly, or making a mistake. So, out of fear, many choose to avoid or do nothing at all.
But staying stuck in your comfort zone means your business is missing out on an incredibly resilient, innovative pool of talent right in our backyard.
Why the Fish Stinks from the Head
In my book, “Win, Win, Win: The 18 Inclusion-isms You Need to Become a Disability Confident Employer,” I share a core truth that every leader needs to hear: “The fish stinks from the head.” We, as leaders, are responsible for setting the tone. It’s up to us to both ensure inclusion is a priority and to provide tools to understand the importance of being disability confident.
True diversity and inclusion cannot be delegated to an HR checkbox or a passive policy manual. If leadership lacks disability confidence, that discomfort trickles down to managers, team members, and consumers. A disability-confident workplace starts at the absolute top. It requires leaders who are willing to unlearn their biases, ask honest questions, and actively build a culture where intersectional talent can thrive.
When leadership embraces this mindset shift, it sparks a continuous loop of value:
- The Candidate Wins: Gaining financial independence, a sense of purpose, and deep community connection.
- The Employer Wins: Securing a loyal, highly adaptable employee with invaluable lived experience.
- The Community Wins: Boosting the local economy and building a fairer, stronger Nova Scotia with more opportunities for other deserving candidates.
Cultivating Your Team’s Confidence
Shifting your workplace culture doesn’t happen overnight, but you don’t have to navigate it alone. reachAbility’s social enterprise reinvests directly into our community by helping Nova Scotian businesses close these exact cultural gaps.
If you are ready to move past the hesitation and build true leadership capacity this October, let’s collaborate:
- Educate Your Leaders: Bring our team into your boardroom. Our Custom Corporate Training Sessions give your managers practical skills to eliminate hidden bias and lead with authentic disability confidence.
- Study the Framework: Pick up a copy of Win, Win, Win through the reachAbility Book Store to explore all 18 actionable principles at your own pace.
- Match Open Roles: Connect directly with our employment specialists to see how your current job openings can align with talented, job-ready individuals facing barriers.
Let’s stop focusing on the obstacles and start opening the boardroom doors.
