People with disabilities are significantly underrepresented in the workforce. Almost four million Canadians live with a chronic health condition or health-related problem – that’s about one in every seven Canadians. Many are unemployed, or underemployed working in jobs below their education and skill levels – an issue called ‘mal-employment’ by former Ontario cabinet minister Dr. Marie Bountrogianni.
She wrote the
Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA)
which came into effect June 2005, mandating that owners need to make their businesses accessible by 2025. She recently published a piece in the Huffington Post updating Ontario’s progress. She wrote that the unemployment rate for people with disabilities in Ontario is 16 per cent (Canadian Survey on Disability).
Two months ago, the Ontario government announced an employment strategy, committing more than $3 million to education and support, challenging employers to hire more people with disabilities. According to the province’s Accessibility Minister Tracy MacCharles, the project could eliminate barriers to employment, and decrease the unemployment of Ontarians with a disability by 30 per cent, creating 56,000 new jobs. MacCharles said the province needs to recognize and address its growing issues and needs, as the population’s average age also grows.
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