{"id":6139,"date":"2021-05-20T06:01:53","date_gmt":"2021-05-20T13:01:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/?p=6139"},"modified":"2021-05-20T06:01:53","modified_gmt":"2021-05-20T13:01:53","slug":"closing-the-disability-gap-salesforce-shares-progress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/in\/news\/stories\/closing-the-disability-gap-salesforce-shares-progress\/","title":{"rendered":"Closing the Disability Gap: Salesforce Shares Progress on Accessibility Efforts, New Advocacy Commitment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Quick Take:<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

People with disabilities represent more than one in four<\/a> of the 7.7 billion people who live around the world. Salesforce is working to ensure inclusion for people with disabilities with participation in \u201cThe Valuable 500<\/a>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Today is Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD)<\/a>, which focuses on digital access and inclusion for people in every country. On this important day \u2014 now in its tenth year \u2014 I am proud to share Salesforce\u2019s ongoing commitment to disability inclusion, a fundamental part of our belief that business is a platform for change. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Expanding our work with The Valuable 500<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As part of our commitment, we announced our role as one of The Valuable 500\u2019s 13 Iconic Leaders<\/em><\/a>, helping to transform businesses with a goal of closing the disability unemployment gap. As part of this designation, we publicly committed to facilitating a global jobs portal \u2014 developed by people with disabilities \u2014 to ensure greater access to opportunities and more diverse workforces. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The facts are simple: persons with disabilities bring a wealth of talent and diversity of lived experience to the table, of immense value to business decisions and issues, from product development and customer engagement to areas of investment.<\/strong><\/p>The Valuable 500<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The Valuable 500<\/a> is a global call to action for 500 of the world\u2019s most influential businesses to include disability on their agenda and end bias toward disability in business.  Today, The Valuable 500 is the largest community of global corporations committed to this goal, with 500 companies on board<\/a>, and more expected to join.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We joined the group<\/a> in 2019 to create inclusive workplaces where everyone feels valued, respected and comfortable bringing their true self to work.  Our participation as an Iconic Leader<\/em> is only the beginning. There is much work to be done, and we are excited to move forward on this next phase of our journey.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reflecting on our efforts in a turbulent year<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In addition to our work with The Valuable 500, we are also making strides in accessibility within our business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2020, we doubled down on our efforts, introducing new programs and policies to make our workplace more inclusive with a focus on pandemic necessities like accessible virtual events. And together with our partners and our incredible employee resource group, Abilityforce<\/a>, we are able to make a more meaningful impact. <\/p>\n\n\n\n