AN entrepreneur who has overcome abuse, disability and racism is to share his story at an event in St Helier today as part of a campaign to make workplaces more accessible to the estimated one-in-seven Islanders with disabilities.
Up to 500 people are expected to attend the Embrace Our Difference event, which forms a key part of Jersey’s Disability Inclusion Strategy and is seeking greater awareness from employers about positive steps that can be taken. The event will see around 50 organisations represented and seeks to underline how small changes can make Island workplaces more inclusive.
Keynote speaker Dr Mark Esho will be drawing on his own experience in business in a bid to inspire those who want to succeed in the world of work – and show employers how to help them.
Dr Esho was paralysed by polio as a child, defeating odds of just 10% that he would survive. He went on to forge a successful career in web technology and became a leading voice in campaigning for greater awareness of those with disabilities. His autobiography “I Can. I Will – Overcoming Abuse, Disability and Racism” was a number-one bestseller and he was awarded the MBE in 2022 for services to business.
Speaking ahead of the conference, which will take place at the Radisson Blu hotel this afternoon, Dr Esho said he wanted to dispel the myths about disabled people not being capable of succeeding in their careers.
“It’s not about charity; I just want people to be given a chance to prove themselves, from which they can grow and develop,” he said.
While discrimination on grounds of race or gender was now seen less frequently, Dr Esho said that disability was a “poor cousin” in this regard, with a lot of work still to be done to provide a level playing field for the estimated 13.8 million disabled people in the UK.
At the time Jersey’s Disability Strategy was launched in 2017, it was estimated that 14% of Islanders were disabled, a proportion that was set to increase as the population aged.
Assistant Social Security Minister Malcolm Ferey, who has led government efforts on disability inclusion since being appointed to his role in summer 2022, said there was a particular drive to make employers aware of the issues involved.
“We want everyone to feel empowered and to be able to contribute to society,” he said. “There should be opportunities for everyone – we have to be mindful of making provisions for people with disabilities, whether it is an obvious disability or a sensory impairment that may not be immediately apparent.
“I hope employers in Jersey will engage in honest conversations with staff about what they can do – often it can be relatively minor things like a couple of handrails, greater flexibility over part-time hours, or accessible parking that will make a huge positive difference.”
Writing in today’s JEP, Jersey Disability Partnership chair Jim Hopley has acknowledged the progress made over the past six years, but expressed frustration at the pace of change.
He said: “A disability and inclusion team has been created and a revised strategy now drives things forward.
“The obvious impact of Covid explains some of the slowness in progress, but at least this time lag has enabled [us] to begin making significant progress.
“There are still many questions surrounding whether government itself has done, and is doing, enough and making sufficient progress in its own area.
“Access to premises is a classic example – in practice, progress towards even fully appreciating what needs to be done, let alone taking action to rectify the situation where practical, has been very slow, but new initiatives and teams are being established to get things moving forward.”
