GOOD news stories in the Donegal textile industry are hard to find, but John Hanna has one, thanks to Britney Spears. His company is riding the crest of a sales surge generated by the pop singer, whose favourite choice of headgear right now is a traditional tweed item from his company, Hanna Hats.
Sales were up 12% last year and are predicted to put in a similar performance this year. For Hanna, however, the real stars are the staff who make his hats.
“When someone comes here for an interview, we focus on the ability they have, not the disability,” said Hanna. “Our success is directly attributable to our staff.”
One of the traditions he inherited from his father, who set up the business in 1924 and which employs 39 people, is a commitment to recruiting and promoting people with disabilities.
“We all have some disability or other, it’s just that some are hidden,” said Hanna.
While competitors have opted to outsource their manufacturing from cheaper labour countries, Hanna Hats is banking on the quality and productivity of the local workforce. Even without the help of Spears, the company was on a sure footing.
Although employment legislation makes it illegal to discriminate on the grounds of disability, few companies are as positively disposed towards employing and promoting people with disability as Hanna Hats. In recognition of this, the company won an award for excellence in career development, training and retention at this year’s O2 Ability Awards, which encourage employers to take a more enlightened approach to disability.
The scheme was set up by Caroline Casey, the chief executive of the Aisling Foundation, who is visually impaired.
“Improving business attitudes towards disability will allow companies better access to an undervalued skills pool in a tight labour market,” said Casey.
However, most employers don’t know how to get started, said Ian Elliott, the marketing and projects manager of Access Ability, which assists organisations to recruit and work effectively with employees who have a disability.
“Employers have always avoided employing people with disability, mostly because of simple fear of the unknown,” he said. “Of course, there is the issue of compliance with legislation, with equality acts making it illegal to discriminate on the grounds of disability, but there are also definite business benefits, such as gaining access to a different talent pool.”
While most employers tell him the issue of recruiting a person with a disability rarely arises, a look at how their jobs are advertised makes it clear that they often put up obstacles, albeit unknowingly.
“Very often they will have advertised the job in a newspaper or on a website that doesn’t allow access to the visually impaired,” said Elliott.
Access Ability’s recruitment and selection services enable employers to attract suitably qualified people with disabilities by highlighting any unintentional barriers that may exist in the recruitment process.
A job-match service provides task analyses of functions to break down exactly what is involved in terms of, for example, mobility. Environmental assessments help employers ensure buildings and workstations are fully accessible — and it makes recommendations where necessary.
While legally an organisation must not discriminate against people with disabilities, according to Elliott, “the main question is are they doing anything to promote equality”? Those who are not sure of the answer can turn to Access Ability for direction. It runs a confidential advice forum so employers and employees can discuss disability-related issues that arise at work. Training workshops are available to help employers manage diversity in the workplace.
This will be increasingly important as the population ages, according to Shira Mehlman, the director of social inclusion at Fas, the government training body.
“Most disability is acquired rather than congenital and most acquired disability is caused by ageing,” she said. “As the population ages, the number of people with disability will grow.
“In many cases, all that is required from the employer is a little creative thinking, she said.
“Often the kind of practices that allow for greater work/life balance for all staff are all that is required to facilitate people with disability in the workplace,” she said. This includes flexitime and job-sharing.
“It is important to remember that, while there are supports available to employers and employees, not everybody with a disability requires them,” she said. While there are a variety of grants available (see below), the surprise is how few employers avail of them.
Making Irish businesses more attractive to both workers and consumers with disabilities is an economic imperative too, she said. “Businesses that employ people with disability attract customers with disability,” said Mehlman.
This is true for Aura Sport and Leisure Management, which runs 10 leisure centres around the country on behalf of local authorities and employs about 300 people.
It is a commercial organisation focused, like any other, on the bottom line, says Emma Killeen, the director of group operations. It also has a very strong commitment to corporate social responsibility.
“We organise swimming lessons for adults and children with special needs, parent and toddler sessions for children with special needs, and we have invested heavily in adapting our gym equipment to make it more user friendly,” said Killeen.
All employees, some of whom have disabilities, receive training in how best to facilitate customers with special needs. Each site also has a dedicated special needs officer and, where possible, structural aids such as automatic doors and braille signage are fitted.
Apart from being a physical expression of its corporate motto — fun, fitness and health for every body — such elements combine to provide a better quality service for all its customers.
“The human side of what we do is very important to us. But it also helps give us competitive advantage over private health and fitness clubs,” said Killeen.
