Co-Designing for Equality at Work

1. About IncludeAbility

The IncludeAbility project, led by the Australian Human Rights Commission, aims to create equality in employment for people with disability. 

Launched in 2020, IncludeAbility works with Ambassadors with disability and major employers to tackle barriers to access and inclusion within workplaces. Its goal is to create more job opportunities for people with disability.

Thanks to funding from the Paul Ramsay Foundation, the IncludeAbility project has started a second phase that will run until 2026. To begin this next phase, the IncludeAbility team has brought together people with disability, employers and government representatives to co-design an action plan.

2. What is co-design?

Put simply, co-design is creating together. Co-design brings together individuals with lived experience and professionals to learn from each other and design things better.^[1]

Active and informed participation in decisions affecting their lives is crucial for people with disability. Co-design puts this important principle into action. 

3. What did we do?

The IncludeAbility team worked with the Centre for Impact and Change and Ambassador Heidi LaPaglia to form a co-design team. 

The co-design team consisted of 16 people from all over Australia—from Perth to Tasmania. It included people with physical, sensory, psychosocial and intellectual disabilities. Together, they brought a diverse set of personal and professional experiences to the table. We had representatives from large employers, research partners, government agencies and service providers. 

The co-design process involved three workshops. Here, it was crucial to create a safe environment for people to share difficult and challenging things they had experienced while in work or seeking work.

The co-design team discussed their vision of meaningful employment and how the IncludeAbility project can help make this a reality.

We also discussed ideas for future pilot employment programs and how we can add to our online resource hub to ensure it has everything people need to know. 

Finally, we also held a testing session with a separate group. This gave us fresh perspectives and ideas on the work we had done in the workshops. 

4. What did we achieve?

The co-design team developed a series of tools that will guide the project. These tools will help us measure how well the IncludeAbility project achieves its goals over the next two years.

The co-design process was an important opportunity to create a safe, respectful space for people with disability to share their experiences in employment and put forward ideas on how to improve things. 

Co-design team member Joe Monteleone reflected that:

“The workshops have really helped me to understand different perspectives and realise there are others with the same experiences I’ve had, it’s not just me. It’s really helped me with ideas for the future. My inputs, I’ve really felt, have been valued and taken on board by others. […]  I’ve felt really included in this team, it’s been amazing.”

Another team member said: 

“My voice advocating for the marginalised groups – CaLD [culturally and linguistically diverse] communities was well received and appreciated."

The IncludeAbility team will continue to uphold the spirit of co-design throughout the lifetime of the project.

Endnotes

[1] McKercher, K. A., Beyond Sticky Notes: What is Co-Design? (2020)