Alberta Employment First Network: Improving Employment Outcomes for Job Seekers with Disabilities

Alberta Employment First Network (AEFN) is a newly formed organization representing our disability community and is working to reduce barriers for people with disabilities with educational opportunities. Our goal is to work collaboratively with people with disabilities and employers to improve employment outcomes. In building member capacity and engaging employers across Alberta, we can implore policy makers in making informed decisions regarding employment inclusion.

With diversity, equity and inclusion at the forefront of ethical employment practices, Alberta Employment First Network is the bridge that increases opportunity for connection and collaboration between employees, employers and community stakeholders. Over time, AEFN aims to have a diverse business membership that promotes and executes sustainable employment inclusion and fosters workplace diversity by celebrating the many and varied contributions of workers with disabilities in Alberta.

What do we do?

Here is a simple breakdown of what the AEFN does:

Enhancing Employment Outcomes – Job seekers with disabilities can come to us so that we can aid them in finding rewarding employment opportunities that resonate with their skills and interests.
Empowering Our Network – The members in our network, for example – employers, will be able to access training, resources and tools to better serve their employees through promoting inclusive employment.
Engaging Employers – We partner with businesses all over Alberta and advocate for workplace diversity and inclusivity. Further than only promoting these values, we ensure that business have the training and tools to support employees with disabilities.
Support Policy Makers – By offering insight, date and recommendations to policy makers, we can help further shape legislation that fosters inclusive employment and removes barriers for individuals with disabilities in Alberta.

How is AEFN beneficial?

“The 2018 Public Service Employee Survey indicated that employees with disabilities report having consistently higher levels of stress and lower levels of psychological well-being at work than their colleagues do.” Although employers are hiring people with disabilities and incorporating them in the workforce, the methods to ensure a sustainable and healthy work experience are still in question. Alberta Employment First Network aims to take on the role of the representative for employees with disabilities by training employers on how to lower levels of stress, increase well-being at work and the overall experience of these employees.

If businesses are not incorporating diversity, inclusion and equity practices out of misinformation or simply not having the access to resources that lead them to hire inclusively, then AEFN will also be the bridge for these employers to have the tools and have access to hire people with disabilities in a sustainable fashion.

Alberta Employment First Network will be hosting events that employers can attend to add to and collaborate upon their knowledge of inclusive and supportive employment practices. The first event that AEFN will be putting on this year will be on October 26^th for National Disability Awareness Month. This event will be a great opportunity for individuals to examine topics related to disability intersectionality within diversity and equity and disability as diversity. Attendees will gain insight from industry leaders with lived experience and will be provided with tangible tools that they can implement within their workplaces. The DEAM IDEA Conference is expected to be full, with a crowd of 160 attendees from across Alberta in HR, Talent Recruitment, Disability and Human Services, inclusive employers, community members, and advocates.