Accessibility Matters! | Sarina Russo

October is National Safe Work Month in Australia. It's a time to evaluate, plan and deliver safe and accessible workplaces for everyone.

Sarina Russo VOICE is the allied health arm of the Sarina Russo group of companies and is a member of the National Panel of Assessors. The National Panel of Assessors provides businesses with a range of independent assessment services to assist people with disabilities or injuries in the workplace.

Each year, Sarina Russo VOICE visits businesses throughout Australia and conducts independent disability workplace assessments to help companies create a more inclusive and accessible environment for their team members and their customers.

"We are here to help a range of clients to better understand and manage their health issues, ideally, on their pathway back to sustainable employment," said Scott McLennan, Sarina Russo VOICE Operations Manager.

A company that excels at accessible workplaces is Australia Post. In 2019/20, Australia Post accommodated 228 million physical customer visits across 4,330 post offices around Australia.

In a recent Australia Post podcast called, ‘Ready to Retail’, Podcast Host and Australia Post Retail Channel Development Manager Joan Lawrie sat down with Australia Post Diversity and Inclusion Partner Sharon Carroll and Australia Post Enterprise Customer Consultant and Co-Chair of Accessibility Matters Action Committee Katherine Havas to discuss accessibility in the workplace.

They discussed the importance and benefits of having everyone’s needs considered when creating accessible workplaces.

“If we were to put a ramp in front of a shop, that’s not just for someone who’s a wheelchair user, someone who’s pushing a pram has easier access, someone who’s maybe on crutches, so unable to navigate the steps, can access… so designing things with accessibility in mind, even though it does benefit people with disabilities, it often has a much broader benefit as well”, Sharon explained.

Ensuring workplaces are accessible and inclusive is everyone’s responsibility. So, this National Safe Work Month, we encourage everyone to see how they can make their workplaces a safer and more accessible place for all.

To find out more information about why accessibility matters, please click here.

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