On Wednesday, the Chamber for a Greater Chapel Hill-Carrboro hosted an event at the Chapel Hill Public Library highlighting the efforts of Work Together NC, an initiative that assists people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to help them enter the workforce.
The event was part of a campaign promoted by the Chamber that focuses on workforce development, small business growth and housing accessibility. According to the Chamber’s website, Work Together NC encourages employers to tap into an underutilized workforce to close the worker shortage.
Community members heard from a panel of IDD-inclusive employers and employees with IDDs. The event also featured a reverse job fair where job candidates connected with employers looking to take part in inclusive hiring.
Nearly 80 percent of individuals with IDDs are unemployed in Chapel Hill, UNC TEACCH Project Coordinator Jacklyn Boheler said, citing data collected by UNC TEACCH Research Specialist Brianne Tomaszewski,
“That’s not due to [a] lack of ability or desire to work — it’s due to [an] employer lack of awareness that there is an underutilized workforce, as well as misconceptions and a lack of confidence about hiring people with IDDs,” Boheler said.
Thirteen Chapel Hill businesses are certified as IDD inclusive by Work Together NC including B3 Coffee, which catered the event, and The Purple Bowl. To be certified as IDD inclusive, businesses have to complete an online module.
“I think creating an accessible workplace is more simple than sometimes employers perceive it to be,” Boheler said.
Both Lucia Romano, who has Down Syndrome and has worked at The Purple Bowl for five years, and Gabe McBride, another employee at The Purple Bowl, said Chapel Hill is a safer space than other communities in North Carolina. But, McBride said the town still has issues with acceptance.
“People use trash talk and a certain tone of voice,” McBride said.
