Inclusion in practice at the San Luis Potosí site in Mexico
The right to inclusion is an essential component of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The RONAL GROUP site in San Luis Potosí Mexico is taking this responsibility seriously. In 2022 it began its first inclusion program together with the Juntos AC organization, hiring six employees with physical disabilities.
While the shortage of skilled workers is a problem for many companies, people with disabilities often spend a long time looking for a suitable position. In Mexico, Juntos AC offers support to both parties by working toward social and professional inclusion. In spring 2022, RONAL GROUP launched an inclusion program for the first time at its San Luis Potosí site, together with Juntos AC. The aim was to employ people with physical disabilities in wheel production.
Close cooperation
Executives at the site and representatives of middle management took part in an initial workshop, to establish the requirements for hiring employees with disabilities. Then, the human resources, production, occupational health and safety and environmental protection departments, supported by Juntos AC, carried out a feasibility study to define job specifications and job profiles. “Since we had no experience with inclusion, close cooperation between all the areas involved was very important right from the start of the program,” said David Augusto Franco, Manager Environmental Health and Safety at the San Luis Potosí site. “This is how we ensured the smooth integration of the new employees into the company.”
Juntos AC put forward suitable employees to RONAL GROUP and assisted with the recruitment process The factory recruited a total of six new employees with impaired hearing or vision to the surface finishing department.
Raising awareness among employees
To make it easier for the new coworkers to integrate into the company, employees at the site were given the opportunity to take part in an awareness workshop. They were able to experience for themselves the hurdles that people with physical disabilities face in everyday life. For example, they practiced moving around the company premises blindfolded with the help of a cane or navigating while sitting in a wheelchair. They also learned to use various communication techniques to better communicate with their new coworkers.
Looking ahead
In 2023, after a positive start to the first inclusion program, RONAL GROUP San Luis Potosí is considering possibilities for employing more people with physical disabilities in the future.
