Pledge to Measure asks two questions:
1. Do you have a disability?
2. Are you a senior leader at work?
Educating staff about disability.
We ask that you try to incorporate information about or a definition of disability with your survey. Many people do not understand how broad disability is or may not identify with the term without further context.
These definitions of disability could be referenced in your HR system near the self-identification box, the FAQ could be distributed via email to your employees, or you could reiterate it in a Pledge to Measure lunch n’ learn. There are many options, and we’re happy to offer support to tailor them to your organization.
The information we use reflects Canadian definitions provided by the Accessible Canada Act and Employment Equity Act, and includes a plain language definition for both of the Pledge to Measure survey questions.
Survey question answer options.
Within the Qualtrics surveys, we provide four possible answers to the survey questions. We encourage you to do the same. This captures more than just a black and white/yes or no answer from your employees.
- Yes.
- No.
- Not sure.
- Do not want to answer.
Question 1: Do you have a disability?
What is a disability?
A disability is a condition that results when persons with such impairments encounter attitudinal or environmental barriers that hinder their full participation in society on an equal basis with others.
A disability is a condition that affects your mind or body. It could always be present or it could come and go. A disability may stop you from doing the things you want to do.
Barriers that get in your way could be:
- physical such as a curb or a heavy door,
- other people’s attitudes about you,
- the expected ways of doing things that are not easy for you.
A disability could be:
- physical – such as having a hard time using your legs or arms.
- sensory – such as not being able to see or hear.
- mental health – such as having emotions that limit your daily activities or being unable to be in control of your thoughts.
- learning – such as having a hard time with reading, writing or math.
- communication – such as needing technology to help talk with others.
- intellectual – such as needing help from others with everyday tasks like managing money and organizing time.
- cognitive – such as having a hard time thinking, remembering and doing things in order.
- functional limitation – such as not being able to walk very far because of a heart condition or being in pain a lot of the time.
How a disability could affect employment.
A person with a disability is defined by the Employment Equity Act (1995) and the Accessible Canada Act (2019) to include the following elements:
- long-term or episodic, AND
- disadvantaged in employment, OR
- see themselves as disadvantaged in employment, OR
- need accommodations or have been accommodated in the workplace.
Solving the barriers to workforce participation for people with disabilities requires adjustments to our policies, environments, and organizational cultures as well as open communication with employees.
Question 2: Are you a senior leader at work?
A senior leader is:
- A person who is the Chief Executive Officer, or
- A person who owns their own business, or
- A person who makes final decisions on part of the work, such as the finances, or
- A person in charge of a region where people work, such as a province, or
- A person who leads a program or team.
You can also be a senior leader if you make important decisions about your organization’s work. Do you report directly to the Chief Executive Officer or the organization’s senior
leader in your province?
Are you involved in:
- Developing strategies so the organization can grow, or
- Setting targets for the organization?
