July-August 2022 - 13

Paratransit
highlight how many people with
disabilities are using public transit?
Do we continually collaborate with
them to increase this number?
* Workforce culture - do we make it
clear to employees that public transit
aims to be as accessible as possible,
and that paratransit
is the backup and not
the mode of choice for
all people with disabilities?
Do we reinforce how our role
is to facilitate independence and
mobility for all customers? Do we
emphasize how much this is a benefit
to the agency and its workforce,
both economically and socially?
* Paratransit and other services for
customers with disabilities - are
people with disabilities employed
in these functional areas? What
could be better than enabling
people with disabilities to assist
and serve other people with disabilities?
Who would know the
customer perspective better?
If you have read this list of questions
and think it is too heavy of a
lift, consider that you are missing an
opportunity to build relationships
and add riders to your system (particularly
if employees ride free or at
a discount); and you are not living
up to your full potential as a " world
class " organization that truly seeks
to be diverse, equitable and inclusive.
But also, you are shutting the
door on a viable option for filling
vacancies in your organization - an
untapped but fully capable resource
that has been overlooked. If you are
interested in elevating your profile
as a disability-friendly organization,
start with a self-assessment using
the questions above, and then take
action. Here are some suggestions:
* Collaborate. Invite disability advocacy
organizations in your area
to meet with you - centers for independent
living (CILs) are a great
start. They form networks with
numerous other disability-related
organizations and can be an excellent
resource for both providing
information to you and passing on
your job opportunities and organizational
interests to community
stakeholders. Learn about the diverse
talent pool in the disability
community and the various capabilities
that are available. Discover
where best to advertise your opportunities.
Connect with the resources
you need to provide appropriate
assistive technology for your new
employees who may need it.
* Communicate. Convey to your
various constituencies that you are
taking affirmative steps to improve
both the accessibility of your organization
and inclusion of people
with disabilities among its ranks.
Host discussions with advisory
groups and others to bring ideas forward
and identify solutions to historical
barriers to job entry. Display
the accessibility of your fleet and
host events that showcase this for
the disability community. Host job
fairs, and as suggested above, have
ADA personnel on site; accessibility
accommodations; and participation
of advocacy organizations.
* Celebrate. Share with your community
the steps you have taken to
become a disability-friendly organization
and make it plain that all are
welcome. Your success will build on
itself as people with disabilities see
others who " look like them " thriving
in your organization and consider
their own potential to do the same.
Following this path can be inspiring
- as people with disabilities
feel more welcome to join your team,
they will seek to assume roles within
your organization that you may not
have considered could be held by a
person with a disability. This is not
only a means to fill vacant positions,
but also an opportunity to expand
our understanding and successful
achievement of diversity, equity and
inclusion.
Christian T. Kent
is principal at
Christian T.
Kent Transit
Management
Consulting,
LLC.
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July-August 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of July-August 2022
