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NH Companies Awarded For Disability Hires
Employment Leadership Awards given to businesses that integrate, support, and retain developmentally disabled employees into their workplaces.
CONCORD – Five New Hampshire companies were honored with Employment Leadership Awards on Oct. 10, 2018, for their work with employees with disabilities. The Comfort Inn in Concord, Dunkin’ Donuts on Lafayette Road in Portsmouth, The Home Depot in Merrimack, the Omni Mount Washington Bretton Woods, and Worthen Industries of Nashua were all feted by NH Vocational Rehabilitation, the New Hampshire Council on Developmental Disabilities, and Business NH Magazine at the ceremony for their work on Wednesday. It was the 10th time employers were recognized in New Hampshire.
The companies were honored for, in many cases, going above and beyond to hire and retain employees while providing an inclusionary environment for them to succeed.
The Comfort Inn, as an example, has hired American and native language interpreters to communicate with employees that are deaf and New Americans. Management also utilizes cellphones to text messages to the employees.
Dunkin’ Donuts was nominated and commended for adopting a policy of inclusion that incorporates employees with disabilities to apply, compete, and secure gainful employment within their company.
The Home Depot hired two young men for seasonal work but later kept them on because of the positive and welcoming culture they brought to the store.
The Omni Mount Washington has hired about two dozen employees with disabilities and was called a driving force in creating opportunities for everyone.
Worthen Industries – a family-owned company since 1866 – began phasing in employees with disabilities into various departments last year and had offered an exceptional learning environment for the employees.
These companies were five of more than 500 Granite State businesses that hired more than 610 employees during the last fiscal year.
“It is great to see so many New Hampshire companies filling positions with high quality and highly committed individuals who need and want employment,” said Frank Edelblut, the commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Education. “This is a success story for NH Vocational Rehabilitation that they don’t share widely enough.”
The keynote at the event was delivered by Randy Pierce, a motivational speaker who, with the help of his guide dog, had run marathons and climbed all of New Hampshire’s 4,000-foot peaks despite living with blindness.