Ready, Willing and Able (RWA) is a national employment initiative, funded by the Government of Canada, and delivered in partnership between Inclusion Canada and Autism Alliance of Canada. RWA was designed to increase the labour force participation of job seekers and employees with an intellectual disability or on the autism spectrum.
As a national strategy to develop inclusive and effective labour markets, RWA aims to:
- Connect and support employers, persons with an intellectual disability and/or on the autism spectrum, and local, provincial and national community agencies
- Promote understanding and awareness among employers and the general public as to the business value of hiring inclusively
- Complement and enhance the capacity of community employment service delivery organizations by connecting them to new employer demand
The Inclusive Workplace
In 2021, Autism Alliance of Canada and Inclusion Canada launched “The Inclusive Workplace,” a free, bilingual online resource to support job seekers and employees who are on the autism spectrum or have an intellectual disability, businesses, and employment agencies.
The Inclusive Workplace offers more than 100 free community-developed multimedia resources, including eLearning courses, guides, and other timely information. They cover a broad spectrum of practical topics, from understanding the benefits of diversity and inclusion in the workplace to preparing for a video conference job interview.
Supported by the Government of Canada, the site was conceived to help Canadian businesses meet their workforce needs during COVID-19 and beyond by tapping into the benefits of an inclusive workplace. Currently, an estimated 500,000 working age adults in Canada who are on the autism spectrum or with an intellectual disability are unemployed or underemployed.
The Inclusive Workplace promotes building inclusive workplaces by helping:
- Businesses learn about and connect to resources to help them be more inclusive and accessible;
- People on the autism spectrum or with an intellectual disability learn about how to find and keep good jobs;
- Employment agencies in their work supporting job seekers and clients.
PRESS RELEASE: New online hub offers free resources for inclusive hiring – Inclusion Canada