Collage of participants for DWC 2024

Disability and Work in Canada (DWC)

DWC engages organizations and individuals in collective action to ensure employment throughout Canada is inclusive, and that persons with and without disabilities have equality of opportunity and choice in careers, jobs, and work. 

In 2017, the Centre for Research on Work Disability Policy (CRWDP), the Canadian Council on Rehabilitation and Work (CCRW), Inclusion Newfoundland (InclusionNL) and the Ontario Network of Injured Workers’ Groups (ONIWG) came together to support the development of a pan-Canadian strategy for disability and work. This collaboration led to the development of the Disability and Work in Canada (DWC) initiative. In addition to managing the strategy, the DWC brings diverse perspectives together in dialogue at an annual conference and policy roundtable. 

Disability and Work in Canada (DWC)

DWC Strategy

After two years of consultations with persons with disabilities, injured workers, disability organizations, government representatives, labour/unions, employers and service providers from across the country –through national conferences, provincial/territorial-based focus groups, and an online survey that garnered more than 440 responses –the DWC Steering Committee published its pan-Canadian strategy for disability and work in November 2019. 

DWC Strategy: Moving Forward Together

The mission of the DWC is:

To promote inclusive, diverse, and equitable labour markets
To facilitate advancement of employment opportunities for persons with disabilities
To uphold the ideal of equality of opportunity and choice in careers, jobs and work for persons with and without disabilities
To promote the development of evidence and use of evidence informed policies and practices
To champion ongoing measurement and evaluation of progress for accountability