EARN Newsletter: May 2024

EARN in Action

Supporting Mental Health This May

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. It is a good time for employers to take a look at EARN’s Workplace Mental Health Toolkit, which provides the knowledge, skills, and resources necessary to create a supportive workplace for employees with mental health conditions. Using this toolkit, organizations and employers can not only maintain a mental health-friendly workplace, but also share strategies with their employees to improve their well-being.

Addressing Unconscious Bias

EARN has a new webpage, “Unconscious Bias in the Workplace,” for employers and businesses of all sizes. This new resource explores the roots of unconscious bias, describes its economic impact, explains how it affects historically underserved communities and people with disabilities—including those with mental health conditions—and provides action steps to address unconscious bias in the workplace.

Discussing Disability Disclosure

When a job candidate or employee voluntarily shares information about a disability or health condition with their employer, they are choosing to “disclose their disability.” Creating a welcoming workplace where employees feel comfortable and safe disclosing a disability is important for many reasons. EARN’s new resource “411 on Disability Disclosure: Employer Edition” highlights the complexity of disability disclosure and the role employers play in the process.

Disability Employment in the News

Recognizing Best Practices in Disability Inclusion

From interviewing to retaining employees with disabilities, there are many examples of best practices for disability inclusion in the workplace. Among these case studies: Advocate Aurora Health, which worked with its talent sourcing and acquisition team to design an inclusive, skills-based approach to interviewing and hiring; Centene Corporation, which launched a campaign called “I Count—Why I Self-Identify” to encourage employees to voluntarily share their disability status; and Eli Lilly and Company, which developed a variety of initiatives, policies, and practices to support its diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) efforts, including a self-identification program.

Appreciating Disability and Diversity in the Workplace

The month of May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders Heritage Month. It is also Mental Health Awareness Month. It is important to recognize that many people have intersecting identities and to offer support through DEIA efforts. It is especially important to support the mental health of people with intersecting identities to cultivate an inclusive and welcoming workplace culture.

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Employer Spotlight

Building Inclusive Talent Pipelines

EARN’s newest series of video case studies spotlights CVS Health and the many collaborations it fosters to help develop job training initiatives for people with disabilities. The company’s Abilities in Abundance program, led by its Workforce Initiatives team, partners with government agencies, community-based organizations, educational institutions, and others to build an inclusive pipeline of talent that is prepared to succeed in jobs at CVS Health.

The content in this newsletter does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. Department of Labor, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.