Inclusive employment experts, VERCIDA, have been awarded the highest level of government recognition for their leadership in attracting, recruiting, retaining and promoting persons with disabilities.
The human resources and technology firm has achieved level three status in the ‘Disability Confident’ scheme. This is a business to business led programme, using simple activities and processes, to encourage and grow employment opportunities for disabled people.
The scheme helps companies to move from level one actions such as identifying improvements to their working practices, to a level two self-assessment which explains how they practically support disabled people into work. The third level takes this a step further, requiring an outside review of this assessment and further evidence the company is leading others in good practice.
Morgan Lobb, VERCIDA Chief Executive Officer, and Founder explained, “This is a significant step forward for us and particularly valuable as this was an external assessment of how we match up to our company’s values. We believe in bringing your whole self to work – regardless of your background – Disability Confident status shows we are advocating that change from the ground up.”
VERCIDA submitted the assessment to teams at the Department of Work and Pensions in June of 2018. This included evidence of their own in-house commitment to disability-inclusive actions such as ensuring a fully-accessible website, guaranteed interviews for those matching recruitment criteria on available roles, and unconscious bias training administered to the entire team.
Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work, Sarah Newton, said, “VERCIDA is leading the way for other employers by offering opportunities for disabled people and creating a more inclusive workforce. I encourage other employers to follow VERCIDA’s example and sign up to the Disability Confident scheme, sending a powerful message to potential employees that they will get the support they need to thrive in the workplace.”
The Disability Confident scheme has been live since November 2016 and supports the Government’s commitment to help one million more disabled people into work within the next ten years. As of June 2018, 6,500 employers have signed up. It replaces the Disability Symbol ‘Two Ticks’ scheme.
The project was designed by disabled people, employers and specialist disability organizations to address the fears that some employers have when considering the needs of disabled employees. More information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/disability-confident-guidance-for-levels-1-2-and-3/level-2-disability-confident-employer
About VERCIDA
VERCIDA is a powerful workforce attraction tool, helping organizations to create a fair and inclusive workforce by offering easy ways to communicate with potential staff and for people to find work that suits their needs. It operates on the idea of showcasing socially-responsible employers who are focused on well-being and are committed to creating a fairer society at work. After seven years in operation, VERCIDA has a portfolio of over 130 clients and a team of twelve. The company currently operates from a base in London and, in the longer term, has ambitious plans for growth into the US and European markets.