Currently unemployment amongst people with disability is more than double the rate of the rest of the Australian population. We would like to understand better what the practical barriers are for small and medium businesses to employing people with disability, and what can be done to overcome those barriers.
The Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA) is running a project that invites SME business owners and managers across Australia to take part in important research to understand what would make it easier for small businesses to employ people with disability. This research project is a priority of the National Disability and Carers Advisory Council’s (NDCAC) Employment Reform Working Group (ERWG) and will provide valuable insights for future policies, programs and processes.
The first stage of research is being conducted as a short 3 minute survey to capture feedback and opinions from SME businesses. The survey will be disseminated to associations and peak bodies from early July 2018, and we are seeking your support to invite your members to contribute to this survey, and also to register their interest in the second stage of research.
In the second stage we are looking for small business owners to participate in paid market research focus groups and online forums which will be conducted in August 2018.
- The focus groups will take place in Melbourne, Sydney, Geraldton (WA) and Launceston, we are looking to hold these groups at local Business Council offices and we’re looking for 10 people from each location to take part in a 90 minute group discussion. Each person will receive a $150 Voucher as a thank you for participating. We are looking for both businesses who are currently employing people with disability to understand your experiences, and also business who are not currently employing people with disabilities.
- The online Forums will allow small business owners from across Australia to take part in a 1 hour moderated online group discussion. We are looking to speak with both business owners who currently employ people with disability and business owners who are not currently employing people with disabilities. Each will receive a $100 Voucher as a thank you for participating in the 1 hour online forum.
We are inviting people to register their interest in this research program, by completing the online survey and registering their details to take part in the second stage research. Places are limited for the paid for focus groups and forums.
All responses and feedback to this project are completely confidential and anonymous, and not personally identifiable.
We would like to thank you for your support with this project, and for encouraging your members to generously sharing their time, feedback and ideas throughout this engagement process.
