March 23, 24 & 26
This event will take place from 23 March 2022 until 30 March 2022.
- Upcoming Dates:
- 23 March 2022 1:00 pm
- 24 March 2022 1:00 pm
- 29 March 2022 1:00 pm
- 30 March 2022 1:00 pm
This coming March (2022), we will host the 2nd annual Summit on Episodic Disabilities and Employment (free admission). The first summit, earlier this year, was a huge success with over 300 participants drawn from across the disability community, businesses, HR associations, government, key policy makers, unions, and other groups, all working towards a National Action Plan on Episodic Disability and Employment.
The coming Summit will feature a special spotlight session on Long-COVID on March 23rd and will continue on March 24th with the official Summit opening and additional sessions on March 29th and 30th. We are still working on the full agenda, but registration is now open. Please join us!
Episodic Disabilities Resources
IDEAL Community Consultations
Intersectionality, episodic disability and access to health services, community supports and employment in Canada
Throughout 2023, Realize worked with twelve national organizations serving people living with episodic disabilities to lead focused consultations within their respective communities. The focus was an intersectional examination into the living realities and various aspects of access barriers to health services, community-based organizations and employment for people living with episodic disabilities in the Canadian landscape. The participating organizations serve communities that provided unique intersectional considerations of gender, racial identity, faith community, health conditions, sexual identity, and age with disability.
(Partner organizations involved: Alliance for South Asian AIDS Prevention, Ase Community Foundation for Black Canadians with Disabilities, Asian Community AIDS Services, Canadian Multicultural Disability Centre Inc., CanAge, Communities, Alliances, And Networks, DisAbled Women’s Network of Canada Disability Empowerment Equity Network Support Services, Live Educate Transform Society, National Educational Association of Disabled Students, Pride at Work Canada, and YouthCO.)
The objectives of this initiative were:
- To address the deficit of research on living with episodic disabilities through a disability-justice lens, led by people living with disabilities.
- To examine the realities that diverse disability communities are navigating.
- To better understand diversity in disability culture among subgroups such as youth, Muslims, 2SLGBTQIA+ folks and others.
- To broaden perspectives on people living with episodic disabilities and work.
- To examine access to and experience of health services and/or community-based organizations by diverse community members who are living with episodic disabilities.
- To increase the capacity of employers to respond effectively to the challenges facing people living with episodic disabilities and provide appropriate accommodations.
This Executive Summary includes key findings, a summary of insights, and links to each of the 12 partner reports.
Workplaces REVAMPED Final Report
This is the final report of the Realize project titled ‘REVAMPED’, Workplaces REcognizing the VAlue of eMPloyees with Episodic Disabilities funded by the Opportunities Fund of Employment and Social Development Canada.
The REVAMPED Project Objectives were targeted:
1. To increase awareness of episodic disabilities among employers;
2. To increase the understanding of employers of the challenges related to working and
living with episodic disabilities;
3. To increase the capacity of employers to respond effectively to the challenges facing
people living with episodic disabilities;
4. To increase access to information and networking opportunities for small, medium and
large employers on leading practices in accommodating employees living with episodic
disabilities in the workplace; and
5. To increase the capacity of people living with episodic disabilities to communicate
effectively about their lived experience.
Recommendations for Employers, Insurers, Human Resource Personnel and Rehabilitation Professionals on Return to Work for People Living with Long COVID
This is a living document that is continually updated based on emerging evidence in the field. The reference list provides scientific support to statements within the document and hyperlinks provide an enriched understanding of concepts that will reach the broader public.
Agenda
A printable copy of the Agenda can be found in the Documents section of the page.
Summit Moderator: David Stempowski, Marketing Consultant, Realize
Day 1 March 23, 2021
1:00 p.m. ET
Welcome
Introductions: David Stempowski, Marketing Consultant, Realize
Welcome: Tammy C. Yates, Executive Director, Realize
Opening and Land Acknowledgement: Elder Valerie Nicholson
1:15 p.m. ET
Greetings
The Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion
1:20 p.m. ET
Opening Remarks
Yazmine Laroche, Deputy Minister, Public Service Accessibility, Government of Canada
1:40 p.m. ET
About the Dynamics of Disability
Speaker:
Gail Fawcett, Senior Research Officer, Employment and Social Development Canada
2:00 p.m. ET
Employment and Young People with Episodic Disabilities
Speakers:
Helen Anderson, Director, Information & Support, Arthritis Society
Arif Jetha, Research Scientist at The Institute for Work & Health and Assistant Professor, University of Toronto, Dalla Lana School of Public Health
2:20 p.m. ET
BREAK
2:30 p.m. ET
Major Employment Initiatives Focused on People with Episodic Disabilities
Speakers:
Carter Hammett, Employment Services Manager, Epilepsy Toronto and members of the Epilepsy Employment Group.
Gayle Restall, Associate Professor, University of Manitoba, College of Rehabilitation Sciences
Elisabeth Harrison, Research Associate, Invisibility2Inclusion, Re*Vision Centre, University of Guelph
Lacey Croft, Research Assistant, Invisibility2Inclusion, Re*Vision Centre, University of Guelph
3:25 p.m. ET
Day 1 Closing: David Stempowski
Participants who attend will learn to:
- Share cutting-edge research and HR-related practice and policies with people living with episodic disabilities
- Address the work-related challenges employees with episodic disabilities are facing at work
Day 2 March 24, 2021
1:00 p.m. ET
Welcome
Tammy C. Yates, Executive Director, Realize
1:10 p.m. ET
Setting the Stage for Success: Overview of the Pan-Canadian Strategy
Speakers:
Maureen Haan, President and CEO, Canadian Council on Rehabilitation and Work
Emile Tompa, Senior Scientist at The Institute for Work & Health and Associate Professor of Economics at McMaster University
1:30 p.m. ET
Major Realize Initiatives on Employment and People with Episodic Disabilities
Speakers:
Ayesha Khan, Former Practicum Student, and
Melissa Egan, National Lead Episodic Disabilities, Realize
1:50 p.m. ET
Harnessing Talent: Putting Evidence into Action
Speakers:
Cameron Stockdale, CEO and President at the Work Wellness Institute
Marc White, Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Family Practice, University of British Columbia
2:10 p.m. ET
Accommodating and Communicating about Episodic Disabilities
Speaker:
Monique Gignac, Scientific Co-Director and Senior Scientist at the Institute for Work and Health and Professor, University of Toronto, Dalla Lana School of Public Health
2:30 p.m. ET
Break
2:40 p.m.
Artificial Intelligence and Disability: Just How Accommodating is AI?
Speakers:
Dr. Vera Roberts, Research Facilitator, Inclusive Design Research Centre, OCAD University
Chris Butler, L’Arche Toronto
3:00 p.m. ET
Sharing Wise Practices: An Employer and a Union Perspective
Speakers:
Larry Rousseau, Executive Vice President, Canadian Labour Congress
Wendy Porch, Executive Director, Centre for Independent Living in Toronto (CILT)
3:25 p.m. ET
Day 2 Closing: David Stempowski
Participants who attend will learn to:
- Support people living with episodic disabilities at work with effective tools and resources
- Demonstrate an understanding of how AI impacts employees with episodic disabilities at work
- Identify best practices for accommodating people living with episodic disabilities
Day 3 March 26, 2021
1:00 p.m. ET
Welcome
Tammy C. Yates, Executive Director, Realize
1:10 p.m. ET
A Reality Check: COVID-19 and its Impact on Employment in Canada
Speakers:
Gail Fawcett, Senior Research Officer, Employment and Social Development Canada
Michelle Lee Maroto, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Alberta
David Pettinicchio, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Toronto Mississauga
1:45 p.m. ET
Lived Experience Keynote
Dr. Margeaux Feldman
2:05 p.m. ET
BREAK
2:15 p.m. ET
Towards a National Action Plan – Facilitated Discussion
- Large Group Discussion to determine the direction of a National Action Plan on Episodic Disabilities
3:00 p.m. ET
Closing Keynote
3:20 p.m. ET
Summit Closing – Elder Valerie Nicholson
Participants who attend will learn to:
- Incorporate accommodations for people with episodic disabilities into the workplace
- Address the knowledge gaps within their workplace related to COVID-19 and episodic disabilities
- Create positive policy change for people living with episodic disabilities
Registration