Ready, Willing & Able: a Creating an inclusive and effective labour market
Ready, Willing & Able (RWA) l A national initiative of the Canadian Association for Community Living (CACL) in partnership with Canadian Autism Spectrum Disorders Alliance (CASDA) l Provincial and Territorial Associations for Community Living and CASDA membership l Employers and community service providers
Ready, Willing & Able (RWA) A National Strategy to: 1. Engage and support small, medium, large, and national-scale employers to recruit, hire and support people with developmental disabilities 2. Promote awareness among employers and the general public to promote hiring of people with developmental disabilities 3. Modernize the community employment supports delivery system to be the effective bridge-builders that small, medium and large-scale employers need
Why an RWA l Canada faces labour market challenges l People with developmental disabilities are largely not in the labour market l Employers need a community partner l Community agencies are not positioned for effective labour market bridging
The Opportunity l An inclusive and effective labour market is possible Individuals with developmental disabilities are capable of working in paid labour force Relationship formation with employer Individualized navigation and job coaching support Strategies for skill development for the job seeker
The Opportunity l RWA marks a shift in strategy Aligns with current federal priorities Meets employer needs Enhances and transforms the community employment delivery system l RWA finds efficiencies and brings transformation to the system
Six key building blocks l Employer capacity and confidence to hire: Engaging and supporting employers to promote understanding and awareness of the value of hiring people with developmental disabilities and providing them with the needed supports to do so; l Community-based delivery of employment support and labour market bridging: Transforming the community employment supports delivery system to be the effective bridge-builders employers need;
Six key building blocks l Planning for transitions from school to employment and careers: Working with employers and the school system to ensure supports are in place to assist students to plan and pursue effective transitions to employment and careers; l Inclusive post-secondary education: Expanding on current models that put supports in place at colleges and universities for students with developmental disabilities to pursue post-secondary education;
Six key building blocks l Employer-to-employer networks: Engagement and support of employer-to-employer networks such as Rotary, Chambers of Commerce and others to champion hiring of people with developmental disabilities; l Entrepreneurship and small business development: Enabling entrepreneurship as an option for people with developmental disabilities by providing expertise, knowledge, resources and support to community agencies to assist people in business ventures.
Ø RWA engages, supports and connects three labour market actors: Employers Community Agencies People with Developmental Disabilities
RW&A Program Model Raise employer expectations and harness demand Create the pipeline to align the workforce of people with developmental disabilities with demand Activate needed building blocks for an inclusive and effective labour market Provide responsive employer and employee supports Transformed labour market system Ongoing research, evaluation and policy development
RW&A Design Features l l l l The RWA is designed to enable coherency of design and consistency of implementation in communities throughout the country. Activities within RWA occur concurrently at the community, PT and national levels. At each level of the initiative, activities undertaken to create and/or contribute to conditions necessary to facilitate increased employment of people with developmental disabilities. Implementation of the initiative is led by key resource people, working in collaboration with employers and community partners, situated at each level, namely
RWA Delivery Structure and Roles l At Community Level: Partnership development (engagement of local employers, community agencies, schools, etc.) Outreach and awareness Facilitation of community employment planning Delivery of labour market bridge-building services (employer awareness, accommodation, workplace policy information, training and assistance; pre-employment support; recruitment, hiring, on-boarding and post-placement support; fostering community and employer leadership)
RWA Delivery Structure and Roles l At Provincial/Territorial Level (via PT Labour Market Facilitators): Labour market development working with national scale employers at PT, regional and local level Training and support to community agencies to lead modernization process Policy development and reform RWA program coordination and administration
RWA Delivery Structure and Roles l At National Level (via national Project Team): Engaging national-scale employers Research, evaluation and policy development Inter-provincial sharing of learning and bestpractice Public awareness campaigns Project coordination and administration
Implementation Strategy l Designed as a multi-year initiative, RWA, in its implementation, consists of two stages designed to firstly focus on the creation of a more direct and effective bridge between supply and demand; and secondly, to boost employment opportunities and community leadership via the resourcing and implementation of known best practices so as to secure meaningful employment.
Stage 1 - Bridging Supply and Demand Employer Outreach and Awareness: l Partnership development with large national employers l Employer Awareness Forums in selected communities Community Capacity for Delivery of Employment Support: l Assistance to employers identified with hiring and retention 20 employment outcomes/community; l Partnership development for community capacities to respond effectively to employer demand;
Stage 2 - Boosting Opportunities and Community Leadership l Implementation in areas of: Youth Transitions to employment and careers; Employer-to-employer networks; Inclusive Post-Secondary Training and Education Entrepreneurship and Self-Employment l Projects in these areas build on and enhance opportunities for people with developmental disabilities and employer leadership. l Community Employment Forums
RWA Results l Project activity in at least 20 communities, in all provinces and territories l Over 3 years, 1200 employment outcomes l Thousands of employers engaged l Transformed community employment delivery system for employers and people with developmental disabilities l Research, Evaluation and Knowledge Transfer
Benefits l People move from dependence to paid employment l Millions saved in P/T social assistance payments l Economic benefits from increased income tax, sales tax revenue, etc. l Decreased dependence on segregated non-work daytime activities l Groundbreaking partnerships
Conclusion l Canada cannot afford the cost of exclusion l Employers cannot afford to overlook this untapped workforce l RWA creates a labour market that includes those who currently are most overlooked and under-represented.