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People with Disabilities

Removing Financial Barriers for Persons Receiving Disability Assistance

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The British Columbia government recently announced significant changes coming to disability assistance in the province.

Beginning Dec. 1, 2015, people in BC receiving disability assistance will be able to hold substantially more assets without impacting their eligibility for assistance. Individuals designated Persons with Disabilities (PWD) will soon be able to hold $100,000 in assets, and a couple where both partners have PWD designation will be able to hold $200,000 in assets. This is a significant increase from the current limits of $5,000 and $10,000, respectively. The higher asset limit means that money received through inheritance would not have to be put aside in a trust.

As well, people with disabilities will be able to receive cash gifts without affecting their eligibility for assistance. Under the current regime, individuals receiving assistance can only receive one-time gifts without their eligibility being affected. There will also no longer be an annual limit on payments people receiving assistance can receive from trusts. Currently, there is an $8,000 annual cap on trust payments for activities that promote independence.

Almost 96,000 people in BC are designated as PWD and receive assistance from the provincial government. These changes will give them greater independence and choice in enhancing their financial security, and also give their families, friends, and community groups an opportunity to provide additional support without impacting eligibility. The new policies are part of Accessibility 2024 – BC’s 10-year action plan to increase accessibility and remove barriers, with the goal of making BC the most progressive province in Canada for people with disabilities.

September is Disability Employment Month in BC

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Most people know that people with disabilities have to overcome challenges – challenges in finding accessible housing, using public transportation, and finding employment, to name just a few. At Pacific Medical Law, we are reminded of this every day as we work to help our clients with cerebral palsy or spinal cord injuries for example, people who, through no fault of their own, are unable to find employment in a traditional workplace.

September 1st marks the beginning of BC’s second annual Disability Employment Month. It’s a chance to recognize and celebrate the contribution people with disabilities bring to the workplace and recognize the many inclusive employers around the province.

Most progressive province for people with Disabilities

BC has set a goal to have the highest labour-market participation rates for people with disabilities of any province in Canada. This is one of the objectives of Accessibility 2024 – BC’s 10 year action plan to make BC the most progressive province in Canada for people with disabilities. The plan also includes strategies for improving the inclusiveness of government, and communities, as well as increasing accessible housing, transportation and employment, among other things.

A recent letter to the editor in the Vancouver Sun focused on inclusive hiring and highlights a number of reasons why inclusive hiring makes sense. For example:

  • A survey of supervisors with experience managing people with disabilities revealed employees with disabilities performed better than their co-workers in terms of punctuality, attendance, work quality, task consistency, and overall proficiency.
  • A Job Accommodation Network study found more than half of 1,100 employers of people with disabilities benefited from increased overall company morale and productivity. Employees with disabilities also bring a new perspective that can help make a business more welcoming to all.
  • Almost 90 per cent of consumers prefer companies that employ people with disabilities, according to a study cited in a Conference Board report.

Approximately 334,000 British Columbians aged 15 to 64 years self-identify as having a disability – that’s 15% of the population. According to the 2012 Canadian Survey on Disability, only 55% of persons with disabilities aged 15 to 64 years participate in the labour market, compared to 78% of persons without disabilities. The cost of workplace accommodations for a person with disability is $500 or less on average. People with disabilities represent an important employee talent pool that can add value to a workplace. Hiring people with disabilities just makes sense for so many reasons. Here are additional stats on disabilities.

To see the full letter to the editor go to: (It’s just smart business – Vancouver Sun Sept 1, 2015)

More details on the business case for hiring people with disabilities can be found at: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2015SDSI0042-001401

For more information about Accessibility 2024, go to: http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/about-the-bc-government/accessibility

The Business Case for Hiring People with Disabilities

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I believe every person living with a disability should have the opportunity to reach their full potential, and that finding meaningful employment is an important part of that goal. The unemployment rate amongst disabled people, however, remains staggeringly high. Giving people living with disabilities the opportunity to prove their potential will slowly erode misconceptions and replace them with a recognition of the talent and commitment disabled people have to offer to the workplace. This is precisely what Mark Wafer has done.

Mark is a successful business person and advocate for people living with disabilities. Born deaf, Mark quickly learned first hand the challenges of holding down a job when you have a disability – so he became an entrepreneur. Today Mark owns and operates seven Tim Horton’s franchises. He purchased his first Tim Horton’s franchise 20 years ago. Five years later he advertised an opening for a new dining room attendant and Clint, a young man with Downs Syndrome, walked in and applied for the job. At that moment, Mark made the decision to give Clint a chance, knowing that unfortunately most business owners would not. He hired Clint and engaged a local community organization to train him to give him the best chance to succeed. Not only did Clint meet the job expectations, he exceeded them, quickly becoming Mark’s best employee. Since then Mark has hired over 100 employees with disabilities – both cognitive and physical. To Mark, hiring people with disabilities simply makes good business sense.

Why is the unemployment rate for disabled people so high?

If it makes such good business sense to hire people with a disability, why does the unemployment rate for disabled people remain so high? As Mark explains, it is simply fear, rooted in misconceptions about the potential that lies within disabled people to make meaningful contributions in the workplace. Specifically, employers have a misconception that hiring disabled people will result in more time off, more training, safety concerns, and higher employee turnover. But in Mark’s experience, the opposite is true. Employee turnover is the best example of why hiring disabled people makes good business sense. While his competitors have annual turnover rates of up to 100%, Mark boasts an impressively low turnover rate of 38%. The average tenure of an employee who has a disability is seven years, as compared to the 1.3 year average tenure of his non-disabled employees.

In addition to the reliability and dedication his disabled employees display, there are further benefits to including people with a disability in the workplace. Mark states, “people tell me they come to my business because we hire real people who make up the fabric of our community”, explaining that 53% of us have someone close to us with a disability.

Mark knows there is a compelling business case for hiring people living with disabilities. Let’s share this important message to help break down misconceptions about the value people with disabilities have to offer in the workplace, and replace fear with hope.

*image via blog.aarp.org

Cerebral Palsy is all about Incredible Adaptability

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Stephanie Hammerman is a case in point. She became the first certified CrossFit coach with cerebral palsy. In her interview with CNN, she said, “If you would have told me that in a year I would be lifting weights over my head, flipping tires and coaching this sport, I wouldn’t have believed you, but this is my reality. As an adaptive athlete and coach, I see and do things differently than most, but that doesn’t make my desire to be great any weaker. In CrossFit when the term “RX’d” is used it means an athlete has done something as prescribed. My weights and rep scheme may never be RX, but my effort always will be. If this last year has taught me anything, it’s to embrace every challenge that comes your way because you never know when that challenge is going to turn into great opportunity”.

Her story proves that anything is possible when people have the support, motivation and the resources to reach their goals. As a CrossFit athlete who had to leave this sport to recover from injuries, I am inspired by Stephanie’s story and encourage you to watch her video here.

*image via http://www.fitnesshq.com

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