PSAC Access Conference
Report: an opportunity to focus on our abilities
More than one hundred PSAC activists attended the 2010 National Access Conference in Ottawa from June 4 to 6, which was based on the theme “Let’s focus on our abilities”.
For three days, they discussed some major issues, took part in workshops and adopted resolutions intended to build on PSAC’s work aimed at defending the rights of workers with disabilities.
Let us focus on our victories
John Gordon, the National President of PSAC, made reference to a recent union victory that scuttled the immediate implementation of a federal policy on parking, which would have imposed an unfair financial burden on persons with reduced mobility.
Gordon urged delegates to mobilize to force the federal government to abolish this new federal policy in its entirety. During his speech he delivered to open the conference, he pointed to numerous victories achieved by persons with disabilities on various political stages.
In the 1970s, activists managed to prohibit discrimination based on a handicap in the Canada Human Rights Act. A few years later, the UN declared 1981 the Year of Disabled Persons.
For Gordon, these victories only marked the beginning of a long path leading to full and total participation by persons with disabilities in society.
Statistics from 2008-09 indicate that persons with disabilities account for close to 6% of the federal government’s workforce. This marks an improvement over previous years. Gordon pointed out, however, that this increase is not due to the fact that more persons with disabilities were hired but instead to greater numbers of workers in the federal public sector who have developed disabilities after they began working.
Gordon also urged the delegation to pressure the federal government into implementing the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Canada finally ratified the Convention in March 2010, four years after it was adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations. As far as Gordon is concerned, it is high time for the government to take firm action.
Mental illnesses rise sharply
The number of claims for disability benefits due to mental illness has been increasing faster than all other disabilities in Canada.
In the public sector, this increase resulted from a decrease in the number of employees, a greater demand for public services and, in some cases, security issues that have considerably heightened the stress of those working at border points and in airports.
For Miriam Edelson, a trade unionist and social activist, the fight for the rights of those suffering from a mental illness is part of human rights and social justice.
In her view, representing a worker with a mental illness is sometimes the most difficult task confronting a union delegate, which underscores the importance of having a conference such as this one where activists can obtain information on mental illnesses in the workplace.
She indicated that the stress can be greater for union delegates who must fight for their brothers and sisters in the workplace and defend unions in their social and family surroundings.
The duty to accommodate
Specialists on the duty to accommodate came in to explain the many facets of this process, the purpose of which is to integrate workers with disabilities into the workplace.
The union delegate for the PSAC Government Services Union, Craig Spencer, indicated that although the battle to obtain the duty to accommodate has been won before the courts, much still has to be done to turn this legal decision into practical measures to help persons with disabilities in the work place.
He believes the first step is to change the thinking of employers so that they stop looking at measures to accommodate as charitable gestures, when, in fact, it is all about respecting the rights of workers.
He added that these measures not only respect the rights of workers, but that they increase the level of productivity in workplaces in Canada by enabling everyone to perform at an optimal level.
According to Alexander Waddell of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, the duty to accommodate must comply with the specific needs of persons and ensure that these needs are being met; and provide a guarantee that opportunities open to Canadians are not limited based on discriminatory grounds.
He added that unions play an important role in the duty to accommodate, because they must collaborate constantly with the employer, facilitate the establishment of reasonable accommodation, even if it conflicts with the collective agreement, and ensure that collective agreements are negotiated so that they do not prevent accommodation.
Waddell also indicated it was important for colleagues of persons with disabilities to be open-minded, collaborate in the establishment of accommodation, be sensitive to the needs of these persons and bear in mind that they could be next to benefit from accommodation.
Ending on a high note: Terry Kelly
Terry Kelly, the award winning singer, songwriter and speaker lived up to his reputation. He inspired the audience with his melodic songs, motivational thoughts, and the main message - we need to focus our abilities. Kelly explained that to do so, it is important to determine one’s purpose in life. It is through this path that our disabilities become a gift rather than a hindrance.
Terry talked about his own background and how he learned that we can achieve what we set our minds to. This mindset can have a ripple effect and impact those around us. He concluded on the powerful note to never underestimate the power of many.
If nothing appears here, something has gone wrong!
Date Modified : 2010/07/02
