The Globe and Mail has been awarded for its dedication to highlighting issues affecting Canada’s physically disabled community.
In making the announcement, the Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons noted The Globe was cited because of its “genuine vision and exemplary action that ensures our workplaces, our communities and our society are inclusive for everyone.”
Vim Kochhar, the former senator who leads the foundation, said events last year brought a spotlight to issues of diversity, prompting sectors across Canada to commit to doing better. But Mr. Kochhar said much of the focus has been around issues of race: Consideration of the inclusion of those with physical disabilities is often forgotten, he said.
“Nobody was talking about people with disabilities, which are about 24 per cent of the Canadian population,” Mr. Kochhar said.
He noted a 2020 report on diversity disclosure practices from Osler, Hoskin and Harcourt LLP found only five Canadian public companies reported having a board member who identified as a person with a disability. Less than 1 per cent of directors of Canadian companies are physically disabled.
The answer, Mr. Kochhar said, is not quotas. Rather, he said the qualifications of disabled people need to be highlighted and they need to be promoted as candidates for corporate jobs.
“You’ve got to have qualified people,” he said.
To that end, the foundation is establishing endowment funds in Canadian universities aimed at helping physically disabled students earn the credentials needed to enter leadership positions.
The award was presented to Globe publisher and chief executive Phillip Crawley.
“We have a national pulpit,” Mr. Crawley said. “Because of the nature of our business, we can reach audiences from coast to coast to coast and it is incumbent upon us as a company to help advocate for those who otherwise would not necessarily be able to do so.”