‘Autism Advantage’ Business Call to Action Launch on International Day of Awareness, 2 April

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will launch a Call to Action on World Autism Awareness Day, 2 April, inviting businesses to make concrete commitments to employ persons with autism.  Business leaders from Microsoft, SAP, Towers Watson and others will be among the speakers at the launch at United Nations Headquarters.

It is estimated that more than 80 per cent of adults with autism are unemployed or underemployed.  Research suggests that employers are missing out on abilities that people on the autism spectrum have in greater abundance than “neurotypical” workers do, such as heightened abilities in pattern recognition and logical reasoning, as well as a greater attention to detail.

The Call to Action will be launched at “Employment:  The Autism Advantage”, an event focusing on measures required to support growth in employment opportunities for people on the autism spectrum.  The intention will be to demonstrate that people with autism can be valuable employees for managers who understand their unique and often exceptional skills, as well as what it takes to create work environments where people with autism can excel.  The event will take place on Thursday, 2 April, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Conference Room 4.

Speakers will include United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon; keynote speakers Governor Jack Markell of Delaware; Thorkil Sonne, founder of the Specialist People Foundation and Specialisterne; and business leaders from Ernst & Young, Freddie Mac, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Oliver Wyman, SAP and Towers Watson, among others.  For a full list of speakers and the programme, visit the WAAD website at www.un.org/en/events/autismday/2015/events.shtml.

Businesses will be encouraged to use the platform established by the United Nations Global Compact at business.un.org to submit voluntary commitments to deliver concrete results in support of the principles contained in article 27 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.  Article 27 recognizes “the right of persons with disabilities to work, on an equal basis with others” and the right to a “work environment that is open, inclusive and accessible”.

The hurdles that need to be overcome to unleash this potential include a shortage of vocational training, inadequate support with job placement and pervasive discrimination.

For further information, please contact Jon Herbertsson, United Nations Department of Public Information at e-mail:  herbertsson@un.org, tel.:  +1 212 963 7346.