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![A large meeting room hosting about 15 people of diverse genders and cultures around a table. A person near the front is in a wheelchair.]()
Access MC
Access MC
At McInnes Cooper, we strive to create a working environment and community in which the unique qualities of every individual are encouraged and embraced, and all employees feel included, acknowledged, appreciated, and supported. To this end, in 2023, McInnes Cooper’s members with disabilities organized and formed an employee resource group (“ERG”) for employees with disabilities and accessibility advocates called Access MC. The ERG has grown to include employees with disabilities and accessibility advocates from across Atlantic Canada.
Our Mission
Access MC makes collective efforts to eliminate discrimination and promote inclusion at all levels. We strive to:
- Provide a community, support system, and safe space for McInnes Cooper employees with disabilities to share their concerns and triumphs;
- Promote awareness of and provide a voice to all employees with disabilities at McInnes Cooper;
- Review the firm’s existing policies, practices, and physical spaces to identify and resolve issues that affect employees with various disabilities; and
- Promote the firm’s hiring, retaining, and developing the careers of employees with disabilities.
Members of Access MC are also active in MC Belonging. They contribute their time and knowledge to advancing McInnes Cooper’s DEIA initiatives as part of the firm’s strategic plan.
Achievements and goals
Access MC members work on various initiatives to advance our objectives. To date, we have:
- Established a network of McInnes Cooper employees with visible and invisible disabilities, which creates opportunities to build new relationships while working towards the firm’s DEIA goals;
- Following an accessibility audit of the firm’s Halifax office, engaged with the firm’s Occupational Health and Safety committee to strategically implement important accessibility improvements to office spaces firm-wide;
- Participated in student recruitment events to highlight McInnes Cooper’s support for and promotion of its employees with disabilities;
- Carved out a greater space within the firm for the voices of people with disabilities to be heard and understood by creating more employee learning opportunities; and
- Added an accessibility lens to the firm’s existing DEIA initiatives.
If you have any questions, please contact Tarah Sawler.
