The latest news on disability employment, workplace inclusion, and accessibility from around the world.
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EmployAbility, a nonprofit supporting adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, has been recognized as Georgia's No. 1 Supported Employment Provider by the state's Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. The organization connects individuals with disabilities to employment opportunities through job training, career coaching and workplace support, partnering with over 100 employers across its service area.
Bridge Creative, a social enterprise, is opening Bridgeworks, a new employment and skills hub in Bishop Auckland designed to help people with learning disabilities and autistic people develop practical skills, gain qualifications, and access paid employment across diverse industries. The hub will offer vocational training, work experience, and enterprise activities with a focus on supporting young people transitioning from education into employment.
EmployAbility, a Savannah-based nonprofit, has been recognized as Georgia's No. 1 Supported Employment Provider by the state's Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. The organization connects individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to employment opportunities through job training, career coaching, and workplace support partnerships with over 100 employers.
Four Rivers Behavioral Health in Kentucky is participating in a Columbia University randomized controlled trial studying the effectiveness of Individual Placement and Support (IPS) employment services for autistic adults seeking competitive employment. The study will recruit 174 autistic adults across four Kentucky sites and track employment outcomes over 18 months to compare IPS services with standard vocational rehabilitation.
Riverside Industries Inc. appointed Markus Jones as president and CEO; the organization's mission is empowering individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through employment, community engagement and personal growth. During Jones's interim leadership, RSI completed a $500,000 construction project to create a new space for its Production Department, a social enterprise that employs program participants with disabilities.
Royal British Veterans Enterprise is launching a £15 million factory in Kent that will create hundreds of jobs and training placements for veterans and disabled people, with a Training Academy offering accredited qualifications. The project addresses employment gaps for disabled workers, with only 52.8% of disabled people in work compared to 82.5% of non-disabled people.
Ardook, an Armenia-based social enterprise, creates flexible work-from-home employment for mothers caring for disabled children, addressing barriers these caregivers face in traditional employment. The organization has expanded to Georgia and aims to scale operations to provide sustainable income opportunities for women unable to participate in conventional jobs due to caregiving responsibilities.
The Arc of Northeast Pinal County, under new director Rosalie Gutierrez, serves people with intellectual and developmental disabilities through programs focused on skill development, social inclusion, and employment opportunities including work at a thrift store and yard-cleaning projects. The organization helps transition students from school to adulthood and coordinates with local school districts and the Arizona Department of Economic Security's Division of Developmental Disabilities.
Hope Services, a workforce development organization founded in 2003, provides vocational training and employment services to individuals with disabilities, offering programs in culinary arts, construction, retail and hospitality. The organization is expanding with a second Life Skills and Vocational Training Center in Hudson, Florida, expected to open in spring 2027.
Belarus is implementing a financing model where business and the state will equally fund employment opportunities for people with disabilities. This policy aims to expand employment prospects for disabled individuals through shared public-private investment.
The Raw Carrot is a Canadian social enterprise that employs people facing barriers to work, including those with disabilities, by offering dignified paid employment in a flexible, supportive workplace environment. The organization operates 10 locations across Canada and demonstrates how inclusive employment models can provide purpose, independence and economic security for disabled and disadvantaged job seekers.
Advantage Services, a Utah social enterprise nonprofit that employed 125 people experiencing homelessness and other employment barriers, is shutting down due to financial struggles including reduced contracts and increased costs. The closure leaves vulnerable workers, many with criminal records or disabilities, without employment and at risk of returning to homelessness.
Singapore's Istana open house featured inclusive employment initiatives for people with disabilities and vulnerable groups, showcasing organizations like Inclus and New Hope Community Services. Hotels including Novotel and Mercure Singapore demonstrated inclusive hiring practices by matching job roles to candidates' individual strengths rather than seeking perfect candidates.
The article examines how inclusive hiring of people with disabilities benefits businesses through improved employee retention and loyalty, using Jake's Ice Cream as a case study where employees with developmental and physical disabilities have created a stable, high-performing workforce. It argues that treating inclusive employment as a core talent strategy rather than charity or compliance leads to better business outcomes than standard retail models plagued by high turnover.
The article highlights six Huntsville-area organizations that support inclusive hiring for people with disabilities, including Ability Plus, Inc. and Phoenix Huntsville, which provide vocational training, job coaching, and employment support services. These nonprofits facilitate partnerships between disabled job seekers and local employers across multiple counties in Alabama.
Employers and community leaders in Yorkton, Saskatchewan gathered for a Disability Employment Awareness Month event to learn about inclusive hiring practices and employment opportunities for people with disabilities. Partners in Employment and SaskAbilities shared success stories and discussed how supported employment placements benefit both employees and employers.
Employers and community leaders gathered at a Disability Employment Awareness Month event in Yorkton, Saskatchewan to learn about inclusive hiring practices and the Partners in Employment program, which has served over 2,500 people provincially. Local employers shared success stories of disabled workers who secured meaningful employment and advanced into full-time positions through supported employment placements.
Advantage Services, a Utah social enterprise that employed 125 people experiencing homelessness and other employment barriers, is shutting down due to financial struggles including reduced contracts and denied emergency funding requests. The closure leaves vulnerable workers, many with criminal records and other barriers to employment, at risk of job loss and potential homelessness.
The County of Los Angeles launched the Neurodiversity at Work Initiative, a public-private partnership to expand employment opportunities for neurodivergent job seekers and build a more neuroinclusive county workforce. The program includes job-readiness training, paid internship positions with benefits, neuroinclusion training for managers, and a Neurodiversity Ambassador Program for neurodivergent employees.
New Hampshire has settled a six-year lawsuit brought by disabled people in the state's Choices for Independence Medicaid program, which provides in-home care to allow people with disabilities to avoid institutionalization. The settlement requires the state to analyze caregiver networks, ensure contingency plans for participants not receiving approved services, and review reimbursement rates that have made it difficult to hire caregivers.
Rhondda Cynon Taf Council has launched Connect to Work, a UK government employment support scheme targeting over 2,000 vulnerable residents including those with disabilities, offering specialist coaching and job placements. The scheme runs alongside the Welsh Government-funded Trailblazers initiative, which addresses personal, physical and emotional barriers to employment through community interventions and wellbeing support.
Jewish Family & Children's Service operates a Supported Employment Program that helps individuals with disabilities secure employment through vocational assessments, job development, and workplace coaching. The article announces the 20th annual Dubrow Vocational Celebration Breakfast recognizing disabled employees and employers committed to inclusive hiring practices.
Ireland's Minister for Disability announced €2 million in funding for 13 organisations promoting equal employment opportunities for women, including Now Training & Employment Enterprise which supports neurodiverse, autistic, and learning-disabled people into long-term employment. The funding aims to remove employment barriers for women across Dublin and Louth through the European Social Fund Plus programme.
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