Gaps and Opportunities: Inclusivity in Corporate SA

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Alright, 10 minutes to 8 o'clock here in power business and we turn our focus to this now. Corporate inclusivity is a vital aspect of building diverse, equitable and thriving work environments, yet for many companies achieving full inclusivity for people with disabilities remains an ongoing challenge. Now we'll delve into a conversation on the importance of inclusivity within corporate South Africa exploring

How far we've come and identifying areas where improvements are still needed. And Sipogazi Pariranyatua, Disability Claims Manager at Momentum Corporate, joins us on the line to share some insights. Sipogazi, a very good evening and welcome to Pub Business. Did I get your surname right?

Good evening, no support any years. Thank you very much. You did. I appreciate it. Fantastic. I guess Supergrassy then talked us about, you know, what true, what does true inclusion mean when it comes to people living with disabilities in the corporate world? That is quite a very big question. It's quite a probably a very long answer, but I think

At the end of the day, anyone who is differently abled is really looking for a work environment that considers their personal circumstances, understands the challenges that they may be experiencing, and then is willing to accommodate and adapt based on those things. And I think inclusivity on a leadership level in an organization is about taking into consideration everybody's voice who sits within an organization to understand

what they bring to the table, what their circumstances are and what their challenges are, and then putting that into your strategy in terms of inclusive appeal. In your view then, how far has corporate South Africa come in integrating people with disabilities into the workforce? I think we've come a long way. I think before, if you were an employer and you had a real cheer ramp into your building, you would celebrate because you were inclusive.

Whereas these days we've come to realise that there's so much more than just a wheelchair ramp that you need to do or an elevator. It's very much about giving people who are definitely abled a seat at the table so that they can be part of the conversations around the issues that plague them and also part of the conversation in terms of solving those issues. And can we delve deeper into that? Because you know, I want to know how has in the understanding of inclusivity in the workplace evolved over the years?

I think one of the biggest drivers of change in terms of defining inclusivity was COVID. Prior to COVID, you know, being differently abled, you needed to see that someone was differently abled. But with COVID and the massive mental strain that a lot of people, a lot of employees were under, it then became really, really important that employers realized that there were silent challenges that employees were under.

psychiatric issues, neurological conditions, all sorts of things that you don't necessarily see with UI. And that then forced employers to then change their thinking and their strategies around being inclusive and what that actually means. It went from real chair ramps and now it was about wellness, mental health days. It was about being able to take your employee and say to them,

on in a one-on-one and say, what are your challenges and what do I actually need to know about your circumstances? So employers were really required to completely transform their approach to differently able to people so that they were able to retain these people within their workplaces.

And that's so interesting, you know, that it took a whole global pandemic to really shift that focus and thinking around making sure understanding inclusivity in the workplace. But, you know, what are some of the key barriers in that individuals with disabilities face in when seeking employment in South African companies? I think the biggest barrier is

reasonable accommodations. You know, when you are differently abled and you are looking for a looking for a job, the actual act of looking for that job may not necessarily be as easy as someone else. And things that you would take for granted if you do not have a disability or someone with a disability really would be life-changing. I think having to attend a virtual interview, that is so much easier than having to actually physically

attend an interview at an employer, which then makes it a lot easier for them to then into the job market. But once you're at work, I think some of the biggest things, one would be stigma. If you're differently abled and you have a condition that is mental, psychiatric in diagnosis, there may be stigma attached to disclosing around your condition. There may be fear around being treated differently by your managers, by your colleagues,

and therefore you don't say anything. So disclosure is very much a big thing within the workplace. And then another factor is actually the financial outlay that an employer may need to do in order to help a differently able person stay at work. Because if I need a specialized computer screen or technology that is going to enable me to do my job, that cost would be for the employer and

we know that with social economic circumstances, some of our businesses are not doing as well as they were. And so that that financial outlay is a lot harder to justify today. Yeah. And on that disclosure aspect, looking at the top, what role they do leaders and senior executives play in driving meaningful inclusion in the workplace, particularly for employees with disabilities? I think leaders

play a critical role because they set the tone. Leaders are going to be the people who determine the language that employees use, the behaviour that employees show to their differently-abled colleagues. Your leaders are the people who are going to implement the strategies. They need to be the people who are the forefront of this is how we approach differently-abled and inclusivity and diversity within our company.

When they walk the talk, it is so much easier for employees to then follow and walk the talk as well. And I guess when it comes then to preparing for retirement, how can companies develop customized retirement plans that cater to employees with disabilities, ensuring their long-term financial security? With retirement, differently able people have different needs. And so it's really important that

they are directed to financial advisors who are able to understand their specific needs and then guide them in terms of what they need to focus on in terms of their retirement. So employers really need to have the systems in place to ensure that the employees are getting advice from the right people. Financial advice, debt counseling, all those kind of services that are going to gear specifically to the fact that if you're differently abled, you may have medical bills

that are not the norm, you know, if someone else may not have the same medical bills, and your retirement plan would then need to cater for that, it would need to look at that aspect of your care to ensure that you have enough when you retire to take care of your medical costs as well. Yeah, that is a very critical one there. But, super guys, you're just finally looking ahead. What do you think then the future of disability inclusion in South African corporate culture looks like?

I must say that I'm quite, I'm positive about it. I think there's a lot of noise in the system at the moment. And the trick is going to be taking all of that noise and translating it into tangible winds. And I think, you know, the noise in the system is a, it's at a high level. It needs to then filter through into each organization at the ground level so that all companies are

thinking about their diversity and inclusion strategies, deciding what is going to be best for their employees, who are the employees that are impacted. But I do think that the artwork is positive because the conversations are being had. Yeah. And I think we'll leave it there on that note. Sibogazi, thank you so much for your time this evening.

Thank you very much and I think we'll have a good evening. All right, that was Sipogazi Pariraniadra. Disability claims manager at Momentum Corporate are taking us through that conversation, wrapping up the show this evening.