Global Accessibility Awareness Day

May 16 is Global Accessibility Awareness Day! This means throughout Goodwill, and globally, we celebrate Global Accessibility Awareness Day by getting everyone talking, thinking and learning about digital access and inclusion.

Over 1 billion people are affected worldwide by disability that includes over 21% of Albertans age 15 and older. Digital accessibility refers to the ability of people with disabilities/impairments to independently consume and/or interact with digital access.

As many of you know Goodwill is a social enterprise, providing individuals with disabilities or barriers, the opportunity to enhance their lives through meaningful employment. When it comes to Accessibility and inclusion, Goodwill is much more than just an employment navigator, Goodwill is a lifestyle, Goodwill is Community.

Some of the ways we implement supporting people with disabilities, accessibility and inclusion at Goodwill Alberta are through the programs we provide like:

 Career Connections

Helping those with personal developmental disabilities, where we work with those qualified for PDD through the provincial government.

• Beyond jobs, where we help women who have barriers entering the workforce with a disability, to find a meaningful career.

• The employer inclusion Accelerator, helping and working with employers to hire people with disabilities across Alberta.

Goodwill Cares
• Advocating and referring you to community supports
• Personal and life coaching
• Assists with goal development and career preparation
• Team dynamics and interpersonal communication
• UKG support and onboarding support
• Ongoing support to ensure accountability
• Or if you just someone to talk to…

Goodwill @ Work

This program is composed of micro-social enterprises that focus on creating opportunities for people with disabilities, training, and sustainability.
These enterprises are based out of the AMAZING Edmonton Impact Centre and include Commercial Services, Repair For GOOD, and the Assembly of product

You Can Ride 2

Based out of the Goodwill Impact Centre, You Can Ride 2 offers adaptive bicycles and services for children who require specialized training or equipment. This gives all children the ability to experience the joy and freedom of riding a bike.

DEI Committee

At Goodwill our DEI committee is committed to setting the standard and making sure accessibility is present and followed through on all levels of employment at Goodwill. With voices of our Goodwill team member’s and DEI representation led by true lived experience from all over the province; ensuring practices and programs are impartial and fair and provide equal opportunities for success for every individual.

DEI action/initiatives:

-DEI Boards at each site, with information on what,
-Diverse holidays, monthly DEI Meetings
-World maps at all sites to make diversity more visible and appreciated
-Policy & SOP review to be more inclusive and remove systemic barriers
-Added the option to include pronouns or phonetic spelling to name tags
-Created safe space signs + buttons
-Work with various DEI experts to explore potential partnerships/training opportunities
-Expanded DEI training across Goodwill
-Mandatory DEI training as part of orientation starting March 2024
-Unconscious bias training for DEI Allies and site leaders
-DEI Training workshops for Senior Leadership
-Partnering with various cultural organizations to attract diverse candidates to Goodwill
-Expanded Health & Financial benefits to better support diverse team members

Accessibility and inclusion are an integral part of our mission and what we truly care about at Goodwill Alberta. Together, we will always strive to create safe space and meaningful opportunities for people with disabilities or people experiencing barriers in their communities.

Goodwill Alberta continues to lead our province navigating, implementing, learning and teaching accessibility and inclusion within and throughout our community.