NDEAM -What does it mean for business?

Dennis Martinez- Regional Coordinator for Business Relations, ACCES-VR. http://www.acces.nysed.gov/vr

I can honestly say that National Disability Employment Awareness Month or NDEAM makes me appreciate my role in the vocational rehabilitation process. I have been part of  helping  people  with disabilities attain employment now for many more years than I can to count and I can say that throughout my career I  have thoroughly enjoyed working with people and seeing them being successful in community employment of all kinds. I have also had the opportunity to educate and provide information to the business community so they can see the value that people with disabilities bring to their workforce. 2020 is an important year in the history of diversity in the work force.  We mark the 75^th anniversary of NDEAM, the 30^th anniversary of the ADA, and the 100^th for VR

Frank Cammarata- Executive Director for Erie County Office for People with Disabilities.

https://www2.erie.gov/ecod/

Each October, NDEAM celebrates America’s workers with disabilities and reminds employers of the importance of inclusive hiring practices. In 1945, Congress declared the first week of October “National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week.” In 1962, the word “physically” was dropped to include individuals with all types of disabilities. Congress expanded the week to a month in 1988, and changed the commemoration to National Disability Employment Awareness Month. This year’s theme is Increase Access and Opportunity to people with disabilities.

During a ‘normal’ year The EC Office for People with Disabilities celebrates Disability Awareness Month, as well as NDEAM. This year would have been a special year as we are celebrating the 30^th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. We would host a local non-profit disability agency each day at the Central library, providing an info table to share their info with the public. We also would host a Disability History celebration focusing on positive steps having been taken over the years in the disability realm. We create an annual calendar for each disability community to share their events and publicize throughout the community.

DENNIS: Each year several employers throughout NYS and nationally are selected to receive recognition for hiring PWD.   In Western New York the major sponsors of NDEAM are ROSWELL PARK and the WNY EMPLOYMENT CONSORTIUM.  THE Consortium is a collaborative group of government, not for profit organizations and employers, that are in the business to promote employment opportunities for people with disabilities.  Like the ADA, The Consortium has been in existence for about 30 years as well. ACCES-VR is also a partner in the NDEAM festivities to celebrate the work of all our partners, who join to make the connection between businesses seeking qualified workers and workers who happen to be individuals with disabilities. These celebrations recognize businesses investing in their local human resources and providing skilled workers with the opportunity to contribute to their communities, earn a living wage, and have meaningful careers.

 FRANK: Businesses are nominated for these awards by organizations in their community. Nominations are evaluated on various criteria, such as creating initiatives to identify and develop increased employment opportunities for qualified persons with disabilities or special measures to attract qualified employees with disabilities through creative and innovative outreach activities. 

DENNIS: I looked at our NDEAM celebrations over the past 18 years or so and saw that over 200 WNY employers have received recognition for their diverse hiring practices. And the jobs that PWD held at those 200 companies were very diverse too, they included: retail, manufacturing, security, automotive, health care and government.

Typically, we have an NDEAM business awards luncheon sponsored by Roswell Park and the WNY Employment Consortium. It is attended by all the award nominees, their guests and those orgs that made the nominations. It’s a big event 140 people attended last year.

 FRANK:  This year’s NDEAM was a challenge due to-COVID19 restriction on large group events, so we had to rethink our what we could do. After some discussion, we opted to go live, to present awards in person at 11 locations throughout WNY.  Roswell Park was kind enough to offer sponsorship for a video production of these presentations through Lemur Studios and Jordan Lema and his crew did a great job filming our award presentations wherever they were. We had hoped that the finished video would ready in time for today but  it is still being edited and will be posted on the BNHRA website soon.

We honored the following businesses  in recognition of the benefits they  have received in hiring PWD  in Western New York: Home Depot, Delaware North, The Market in the Square, Marshalls, Applebee’s, Target, Lenco Lumber, Ashville General store, Wegman’s,  and the Outback Steakhouse. Nominating entities included People Inc., The Arc Erie County, Aspire of WNY, VIA, OLV Human Services and ACCES-VR.

 DENNIS: Here is an example of what we mean when we say that  these  businesses have benefited from diversity in their workforce by  PWD.

People Inc nominated Lenco Lumber as an exemplary employer. Chris has been assisting customers with carryout/loading vehicles, loading/unloading pallets and general labor for the last 9 years at Lenco.  Store manager, Bob Drozda said: “I am extremely proud of all Chris’ accomplishments. Chris has the ability to take initiatives and continues to be a respected, reliable employee”. Our store remained open during the COVID-19 pandemic.  We were surprisingly busy, and Chris did a great job keeping up with the demand and was flexible with his schedule. I would absolutely recommend this service to other employers. 

DENNIS: In addition to these business awards, we have been very fortunate to have a NY Statewide honoree in the category of Entrepreneur with a disability. WNY competes with other regions of the state for one winner in this category. Nominations go before a board made up of representatives from Empire State Development, The State Education Department and the Department of Labor, among others.  The winner receives a certificate signed by Governor Cuomo and the Vice Chancellor of the Board of Regents. We have had six such honorees in the past six years. The businesses have ranged from therapeutic Hula Hooping to grave tending.  There were also entrepreneurs who ran a beauty salon, a bakery and a day care center. All these individuals received assistance from ACCES-VR in starting or growing their businesses. This year our Statewide winner is Mr. Sean Cuddihy and his business is Room 9 Podcasts.

We would like Sean Cuddihy to tell his story….

Sean Cuddihy- Owner Room 9 Podcasts and Recipient of the 2020 NEW YORK STATE AWARD FOR ENTREPRENEUR WITH A DISABILITY. https://www.room9podcast.com/

While I was in my long-term treatment facility for a heroin use disorder the idea to start “Room 9”, my room number, took root. I would end every evening talking with my roommate about life and all the challenges it likes to bring to our front doorstep.  Eventually I said, halfway kidding, that we should start a podcast, and that’s exactly what we did. In fact, the first two episodes of Room 9 were recorded while we were out on pass towards the end of our Rehab stay. Walking into it I had absolutely no experience with recording and editing audio, thank god for YouTube. The podcast slowly started to pick up steam throughout Western New York and I decided to start taking this seriously. I emphasize “I”. Most people do not realize what it takes to start a business, especially when you have no idea what you’re doing or where to even begin and my roommate wanted nothing to do with that. The only thing I did know is that if there was ever a time to give this a try, it is now. With the help of a few CEO’s from companies such as Horizon Health Services, Spectrum Health & Human Services, and Evergreen Health I was able to grow the podcast from 15 downloads per episode to almost 1,000 downloads per episode in almost a year. As exciting as that was, I still felt like something was missing.

When you Google “best way to end stigma around mental health & addiction” and you go down the list, website to website, you will find that the number one way to end stigma is to just talk about it. In its essence, my mission, with Room 9, has always been to share the stories of those who need a voice, of those who need a stage to stand on. As much as I love hosting a podcast, I still felt like something was missing. I knew there had to be something more out there. That is when I fell in love with Video Production. Again, I knew nothing about what I was getting into or how I would even obtain the equipment to start. That is when Anne Constantino, the CEO of Horizon Health, told me about ACCES-VR. I applied and was accepted into the program. Nicole Tatum, my ACCES-VR counselor referred me to the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) to help me put together a business plan. Once again, I was stepping into territory I knew nothing about. After months and months of research and meeting with people from the SBDC, I was given an opportunity to present my plan to the Self Employment Committee at ACCES-VR in downtown Buffalo.  The committee must have liked my presentation because I got a call 20 minutes after I left that ACCES-VR would sponsor my business.

Up until this point there was no shortage of hurdles I had to climb, but the real challenges all came after that approval phone call. Anyone who starts a business knows it is an emotional rollercoaster ride. One minute you are pumped up and excited and the next you are wondering if anything you are doing is even making a difference. Walking into this, I knew nothing about marketing, filming, editing, branding, building a website; that list goes on and on. What I did know is that I was, for the first time in my life, going in the direction I was supposed to be heading in. Yes, I am putting in 12 to 14 hour days. Yes, I have no social life, but not one second of this feels like work. I am now working on projects with several companies in the Western New York area and have tripled my income from 2019. I have been featured in “Podcast Business Journal” and obtained my first video project, with no experience, for $5,000. No matter how many bumps I come across, there is no doubt in my mind “Room 9” will continue to grow. I have never had to work so hard to obtain anything in my life, but I have also never been rewarded this much either. I knew when I first started “Room 9” it would remind me every day of my recovery. Every social media post, every podcast interview, and every story I would tell; I knew that it would remind me of the darkness I had to go through to get here. “Room 9” not only helps to keep other people in recovery, but it helps to keep me there as well. I have come so far and have even further to go, but I am helping people. Which, in return, helps me.

FRANK: So, what does NDEAM mean for business? Well, it certainly means that we should patronize those 11 companies that have been honored this year, but NDEAM also provides opportunities for business, to do a variety of activities. For example

• Review policies— NDEAM is the perfect time to review your company's policies to ensure they convey a commitment to an inclusive workplace culture
• Establish an employee resource group— NDEAM is a perfect time to launch a disability Employee Resource Group (ERG). Sometimes referred to as Employee Networks or Affinity Groups, ERGs offer employees an opportunity to connect and receive support from others with similar backgrounds or interests.  Two companies that  are  examples and past NDEAM award winners are SODEXO https://us.sodexo.com/our-impact/diversity-and-inclusion.html  and ROSWELL PARK https://www.roswellpark.org/diversity
• Create a display— NDEAM is a great time to freshen up bulletin boards in break areas or other locations that employees frequent by posting positive messages about your company's commitment to a disability-inclusive workforce.
• Train supervisors— Supervisors are the individuals closest to an organization's workforce. As part of NDEAM, consider conducting training to ensure they understand their role in fostering an inclusive workplace culture. ACCES-VR and Erie County Office for People with Disabilities can provide disability awareness training to your company at no cost
• Educate employees— It is critical that companies committed to disability inclusion effectively and regularly reinforce that commitment to employees. NDEAM offers an opportunity to do this through disability training or informal educational events such as brown-bag lunch discussions.   In addition to ACCES-VR and Erie County Room 9 podcasts can provide training in disability awareness/ etiquette and reducing stigma and misinformation about disabilities, especially those related to mental health and substance abuse

DENNIS: In closing we hope every business can assess how they can Increase Access and Opportunity for people with disabilities.

Thank You