Why social enterprises should employ disabled people

Want a loyal, productive staff who can save you money in terms of retention, have less time off sick, and have fewer workplace accidents and stay in their jobs longer? If you are, you might just be looking for a disabled employee.

Rather than have a social mission that helps the disabled people, why not consider employing them and give them a new sets of skills? As social entrepreneurs, we should live with our words and lead with example.

For social enterprises, it's a no-brainer. Not only will employing disabled people help us gain all of the benefits outlined earlier, it also contributes to promoting this good practice. Disabled people are twice as likely to be unemployed as non-disabled peopleor social enterprises, it's a no-brainer. Not only will employing disabled people help us gain all of the benefits outlined earlier, it also contributes to promoting this good practice. Disabled people are twice as likely to be unemployed as non-disabled people.

For corporates to accept them, it would then be a huge challenge. In the corporate world, its more of the question of how can you benefit my organization rather than how the organization can benefit you. If disabled people were to stand a chance in getting the job, they would have to be more attractive and have outstanding qualities than the average person.

However, while we tackle the problem on getting corporates to accept the disabled, it's not easy getting the disabled to work as well. Many are mistrustful of employers, having vast experience of being discarded the minute they declare a disability. So what can we do to let them trust people in the workforce once again?

Personally, I find that the only way to start the ball rolling is really to lead by example. In promoting the reality that employing disabled people is just as beneficial for the employer as it is for the employee, emphasizing that it is a win-win situation and is anything but an act of charity.

Tell me your opinions on what we can do for these challenges so we can share good practice and learn from each other. (:

Read the full article here : http://www.guardian.co.uk/social-enterprise-network/2012/jan/24/social-enterprises-employ-disabled-people?newsfeed=true

Reference : Hatton, J. Why social enterprises should employ disabled people. Retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk/social-enterprise-network/2012/jan/24/social-enterprises-employ-disabled-people?newsfeed=true