Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | APRIL 3, 2023 23 FOCUS: DEI SUPPORTING SPONSOR PARTNER SPONSORS UNLIMITED OPPORTUNITY SPONSORS COMMUNITY BUILDER SPONSORS Aetna CVS Health The Cato T. Laurencin Institute For Regenerative Engineering Central Connecticut State University Saint Francis Hospital Tito's Handmade Vodka FRIEND SPONSORS Barnes Group Inc. Connecticut Sun Hartford Hospital Howard K. Hill Funeral Services Jackson Lewis LLP MEDIA SPONSORS PRESENTING MEDIA SPONSOR CHAMPION SPONSORS Hartford Region IN THE COMPANY OF WOMEN LUNCHEON Equity Isn A Game April 20, 2023 Pre-event networking & vendors: 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Lunch: 12:30 p.m. Keynote address: 1:00 p.m. CONNECTICUT CONVENTION CENTER 100 COLUMBUS BLVD HARTFORD, CT 06103 Keynote: Jackie Joyner-Kersee Track Superstar To purchase tickets and to sponsor scan QR code Thank You for Sponsoring In The Virtual Company of Women KAMAN Shipman & Goodwin, LLP Trinity College Barnes Group, Inc. blumshapiro Connecticut Convergence Institute Hartford Hospital MDC United Way of Central and Northeaster Connecticut Willis Towers Watson Thank You for Sponsoring In The Virtual Company of Women KAMAN Shipman & Goodwin, LLP Trinity College Barnes Group, Inc. blumshapiro Connecticut Convergence Institute Hartford Hospital MDC United Way of Central and Northeaster Connecticut Willis Towers Watson *As of 3.23.23 training and also funding for no-risk trial work periods with employers. "It gives them a chance to kind of get a feel for the job," Bracken said. "It also gives us a chance to really focus on what their strengths are, as well as what potential barriers to competitive employment might exist, and then it gives us a chance to come up with mitigation strategies to overcome those potential barriers." Those strategies can include an on-the-job coach provided at no cost to the employer by his agency. In fact, Bracken himself provides coaching services to several of his clients, either on-site at their job or on the phone. "There's a segment of the popu- lation that their way of being might not allow them to fully enter into a pre-existing job," he said. "So, as a society, what do we do? Do we say, 'well, these people can't work'?" Lack of awareness That's where customized employ- ment comes in. One of Bracken's recent clients, who is on the autism spectrum, was seeking work as a veterinary technician. Bracken approached and partnered with Connecticut Veterinary Center in West Hartford where his client got a 40-hour job preview in an existing open position. "It was clear that it wasn't going to work out," said Bracken. "She loves the animals so much, she gets too excited when they're there. A vet tech is supposed to bring the person in and then when the vet comes in the room, fade into the background. She kept wanting to engage the pets. She didn't want to let them leave." So, he switched tack to see if the Center would agree to create a customized position. "A lot of people that are on the spectrum are really good at laser-fo- cusing on computer tasks. So I pitched to them, what if we created a new vet administrative assistant position and she could take some of these administrative burdens off your other people like scheduling, billing, scanning?" The Center agreed, and Bracken's client was able to stay with her vision of employment in a vet's office. Bracken said he doesn't often encounter outright discriminatory attitudes, but there is a deep lack of awareness among employers of the barriers to employment experienced by a big segment of the population. For instance, even the ubiquitous online application isn't geared to be accessible to many people with disabilities. DEI, said Bracken, "has to be equality of opportunity. We need to make sure that these initiatives are focused on creating an atmosphere and systems that propagate equality of opportunity." One of Bracken's recent success stories, Jenelle Woods, agrees. In December, the 29-year-old Manchester resident scored her first job working as a Walmart greeter. "I needed to do what I can for me. I just needed to get out of the house, and that was my biggest thing," Woods said. "It's helping me to be independent and just do what I can." DISABILITY LABOR FORCE STATISTICS DISABILITY LABOR FORCE NON-DISABILITY LABOR FORCE AGE GROUP 16-64 16+ 65+ 16-64 16+ 65+ LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION RATE 37.8% 23.1% 8.1% 77.1% 67.8% 23.7% EMPLOYMENT-POPULATION RATIO 34.8% 21.3% 7.7% 74.4% 65.5% 23% UNEMPLOYMENT RATE 8.2% 7.6% 4.9% 3.5% 3.4% 2.7% Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

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