Responding to the needs of people with disabilities “PWD” builds social equity. It involves:

  • Doing the right thing.
  • Doing it for the right reasons and not just because you have to do it.
  • Equal access for all.
  • Builds trust with consumers when we demonstrate we care about others.

PWD Represent an untapped consumer Market base*

  • Globally, there is an estimated population of 1.3 billion PWD and these people constitute an emerging market the size of China. Their Friends and Family add another 2.3 billion potential consumers who act on their emotional connection to PWD. Together, they control over $8 trillion in annual disposable income.
  • In the United States, over 58 million people – or nearly 20percent of the population above the age of 5 – identify themselves as having disabilities. Of this population of people, 29% are people with visible disabilities such as physical impairments or blindness. The other 71% have invisible disabilities such as learning or cognitive problems.
  • In the U.S, Friends and Family of the disabled represent another estimated group of over 120 million. Together, PWD and their friends and family have nearly $4 trillion of disposable income.
  • The aging Boomer population is adding to the number of PWD daily. As Boomers’ physical realities change, their need and desire to remain active in society dovetails with the demands of PWD. Consumers that care about the disability market are increasingly directing their loyalty, and their consumer spending habits toward companies that demonstrate intentional inclusive actions that take into consideration PWD – as employees and as customers.

    • *Source: The Return on Disability Group, 2014 Annual Report

The benefits of becoming a disability-smart business

Becoming disability-smart is a catalyst for making your organization more productive and more effective. The business benefits are proven; stronger leadership and more productive employees, more effective talent recruitment, more innovative products and use of new technology, stronger customer relationships and a better overall reputation. There is a worldwide move towards rights-based legislation which expects the individual to be employed fairly, on the basis of their potential to do the job, with or without adjustments. There are also varying legal definitions of disability and different and inconsistent regulatory requirements on employers and providers of goods and services. ‘Minimal compliance’ is no longer a sufficient response to this challenge.