Globally, around 1 billion people live with some form of disability, and that number is rising.
Unfortunately, they are enduring biases in all settings of our society.
It is a challenge for Persons with Disabilities (PwD) to break the barriers and ensure equal presence in most walks of life, and especially in the job market.
However, there are some leading organizations that advocate for persons with disabilities to include them in economic and social inclusion.
The country's leading fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) company Unilever Bangladesh Limited (UBL) is one such organization.
According to a recent survey conducted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), 4.74 million people in the country are physically and mentally challenged, making up 2.4% of the total population.
CourtesyFurthermore, the study indicates that only 40% of children with disabilities can attend school, despite the fact that almost all children nationwide enroll in primary education and just 27.21% of people with disabilities are able to work.
The vast majority of these people are unable to reach their full potential because they lack access to basic health care, education, and job opportunities.
Unilever prides themselves on a diverse and representative workforce that reflects the current world and the consumers they serve.
Globally, by 2025, they want to see people with a disability representing 5% of their workforce and become their employer of choice.
Persons with disabilities often get trapped in a cycle of alienation: not finding the optimum educational or family support and not getting opportunities in job markets to empower themselves socially or financially to break out of the vicious circle.
Commitment
Unilever's commitment on creating diversity, inclusion and equity in the workspace operates with an objective of creating opportunities to those who are disempowered in the status quo simply because of who they are.
Unilever's ambition is to create more equity with a holistic approach, focusing on how the scale and reach of the business can be used to mobilize the greatest impact: driving equity through the workplace, brands, supply chain and communities.
In Bangladesh, the company has implemented several pioneering policies to ensure universal equality and a diverse and inclusive working environment.
Currently, UBL employs over 30 persons with disabilities in its corporate and field offices.
To ensure their inclusion, UBL realized that the main challenge was not simply including them, but sustaining them as well.
Therefore, the company focuses more on up-skilling persons with disabilities in a structured manner to enhance their capacities and make them market-ready.
UBL conducts holistic role mapping for people with disabilities to identify where they can contribute the best and what role will be well suited for them.
CourtesyOnce the people with disabilities are included in the system, UBL does a skill-gap analysis, which allows them to identify and understand where their knowledge and expertise are lacking, as well as where they need to focus to fill them.
UBL also conducts different sessions to sensitize team members and create awareness of the challenges persons with disabilities face.
It is about making the team ready to accept them in their mind and to include them on the team as well as recognize them in the community.
UBL also invests in technology to ensure accessibility for their team members.
For example, an OrCam MyEye wearable artificial intelligence device is used for people with visual impairment, so that they can read text from any surface.
And with the help of software that enables voiceover speech to script to text, they can record and read back actions from meetings or consumer conversations.
In addition, UBL's newly constructed corporate office has accessible bathrooms, emergency evacuation chairs, and ramps for wheelchair access to ensure that persons with disabilities have the access to all their basic needs.
These initiatives are the testaments of Unilever's commitment to creating diversity, inclusion and equity through the workplace, brands, supply chain and communities.
Describing the experience of working for Unilever Bangladesh, Asif (name changed due to privacy protection), a person with disability, said: “I have been able to achieve this stage by overcoming hundreds of hurdles and numerous challenges because I wish to dream like any other person around me. I am sincerely thankful to have Unilever Bangladesh and my co-workers for being with me from the very first day. By promoting equity within equality, this organization is actively contributing to the advancement of society.”
It is Unilever's agenda to ensure that all women and men, including young people and persons with disabilities, are employed and work in decent conditions.
Unilever also supports Niketan Foundation, an organization working in Bangladesh with children and youngsters with intellectual and complex disabilities, through in-kind support and donations.
As part of their commitment to building a skill-based generation with equality, it partners with external stakeholders such as A2i and Disabled Rehabilitation and Research Association (DRRA), conducts training sessions, evaluates its effectiveness, and is committed to increasing the inclusion of people with disabilities and accelerating its efforts to improve their lives.
This article has been published in partnership with Unilever Bangladesh Ltd
