PR94377

LONDON, Feb. 3, 2022 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

- According to new research conducted by the Valuable 500, 47% of businesses

believe there aren't enough candidates with a disability, however, research in

the UK shows there are 1M disabled people who want to work but are being denied

the opportunity

- The research highlights how misconceptions, lack of representation and taboos

are still playing a huge role in recruitment policies

- Research also showed that almost two thirds (63%) of businesses didn't know

how many people within their organisation identify as disabled

Global business collective, the Valuable 500, today announces new research

showing that almost half of businesses believe that a key barrier to the

recruitment and retention of disabled employees is the lack of candidates.

This contrasts evidence from government figures showing that there are one

million disabled people in the UK who can and want to work but are being denied

the opportunity.  The data, highlighted by Virgin Media and Scope with their

ground-breaking campaign was supported by an Opinium survey of 2,000 disabled

people which found that when applying for jobs only half of applications result

in an interview, compared with 69% for non-disabled applicants. 2021 Government

figures show that the disability employment gap sits at 28.4%, a decrease year

on the year by just 0.7%. This shows a clear need for a shift away from

misconceptions in recruitment.

One major factor behind the lack of job candidates with disabilities could be

attributed to lack of representation of disability inclusion.   It is often a

forgotten aspect in the broader business agenda – particularly when it comes to

business leadership where just 4% of CEOs have a disclosed disability.

Disabled people bring immense contribution to business and society as a whole,

making up 15% of the global population, they bring diversity of thought, lived

experience and a wealth of talent, all vital for business sustainability.

Christophe Catoir, President of Adecco who is a member of the Valuable 500,

explains : "At Adecco, we intend to make the future work for everyone, and we

really mean it. We have developed a sound culture of inclusion that enforces

integration in the workplace for persons with disabilities across all our

markets. With perseverance, we demonstrate every day that persons with

disabilities are reliable, skilled and talented individuals with the potential

to belong fully to the world of work in all industries and types of positions."

Since reaching the goal of 500 organisations in May 2021, the Valuable 500 has

launched phase 2 of the campaign and it has received the largest ever

investment into disability business inclusion, with The Nippon Foundation

investing $5 million to catalyse new Valuable 500 initiatives.

Caroline Casey, Founder of the Valuable 500, commented:

"We are now entering 2022, and employers who have gone through two years of

disruption are re-building and need to ensure that disability inclusion is at

the heart of their agendas. What the research shows us today, is that whilst

many companies are striving to do just this, we still have a lack of

representation and businesses still have a long way to shift the dial truly and

irreversibly on disability inclusion. 18% of the UK population have a

disability and they need to be seen and heard.

"But more than this – we need to strive to fundamentally transform the global

business system and fight for an inclusive society.  At some point in our

lives, every single one of us will experience disability and we all have a

responsibility to make humanity function better."

Paul Polman, Chairman of the Valuable 500, commented:

"Having a diverse and inclusive workforce is a powerful driver for improved

company performance, and this must extend to including people with

disabilities. It's not only the right thing to do, but also the smart and

profitable thing to do for any business leaders looking to unlock talent, boost

innovation and build a culture of trust, respect and inclusion throughout the

company.

"We've seen progress in recent years as the biggest business groups across the

globe have signed up to disability inclusion commitments through the Valuable

500. 2022 must bring faster action to close the disability employment gap once

and for all."

Media contacts

Please contact:

Jess Buckley

Seven Hills

Email: jessica.buckley@wearesevenhills.com

Richard Poston

Director of Communications, the Valuable 500

Email: Richard@thevaluable500.com

Notes to Editors

About the Valuable 500

Valuable was launched by social entrepreneur and activist Caroline Casey at One

Young World 2017 in Bogota, Colombia and the inception of the Valuable 500 was

announced at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in January 2019. Today the

Valuable 500 is the largest community of Global CEOs committed to disability

inclusion in business.

Since its creation, the Valuable 500 has achieved its initial goal of

persuading 500 multinational organisations to make a public commitment to

disability inclusion in their organisation, igniting a historic global movement

for a new age of diversity in business. The Valuable 500 and their global

impact partner The Nippon Foundation, will be working closely with the World

Economic Forum and International Disability Alliance - bringing together a

leading philanthropic organisation with the most prestigious global business

network and the voice of the global disability community.

By engaging with the world's most influential business leaders and brands, the

network now has a combined revenue of over $8 trillion and employs a staggering

22 million people worldwide. Its members include 13 global CEOs and companies

who will be spearheading the programmes and services to be offered under Phase

2 of the campaign, which will be activated through global disability surveys,

disability trend reports and an executive disability resource hub.

After reaching this important milestone, the Valuable 500 is determined to

create a community that supports and empowers its 500 members to systematically

transform their businesses, so they include the 1.3 billion people living with

disabilities worldwide, thereby unlocking their business, social and economic

potential.

Source: the Valuable 500