McMaster University has announced that two experts are collaborating to explore how Canadian workplaces can better welcome and accommodate workers with disabilities.  Emile Tompa from the Department of Economics and Rebecca Gewurtz from the School of Rehabilitation Science (SRS) are joining forces to research how workplaces can be redesigned to include persons with disabilities. Their six-year initiative called Inclusive Design for Employment Access (IDEA) is a six-year initiative. The researchers are receiving funding from Canada’s New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF)

The focus of this research initiative is to “build up employer capacity to create more inclusive and accessible workplaces and build up employer confidence so that they can meet the needs of diverse and talented candidates”.

Tompa, senior scientist at the Institute for Work and Health and associate professor in the Department of Economics said that “we want employers to move past their apprehensions, such as concerns about the requirements of government legislation or fears over what to do if a potential employee with a disability does not work out. It is all part of the stigma we are trying to combat.”

To learn more about this exciting research initiative, click here.