Why I’ll get shop Walgreens more

I came across a great story this week and decided I wanted to Share Some Good Stuff with my pal Skeet. The story is from 2007 but is as relevant today as it was when it was published.

According to the story I read on MSNBC only 35 percent of working-age Americans with disabilities had full or part time jobs in 2004 nationwide. They obtained this statistic from a survey by the National Organization on Disability. People without disabilities had an employment rate of 78 percent. Having a child with Down Syndrome, I myself often wonder what is in my youngest son CJ’s future, particularly after I’m gone. Like many other parents, I not only wonder, but I also worry. If more corporations took actions similar to the ones in this story I would have no worried. That’s why I will be shopping Walgreen’s regularly.

Last June, 2007, Walgreens opened a unique distribution center in South Carolina. This distribution center was built to accommodate an 800 person work force and employees with all types of disabilities. The original goal was to fill a third of the jobs with disabled employees, but when the story ran last July the company was ahead of that goal, reporting more than forty percent of the 250 people hired were disabled in some way.

All employees receive disability awareness training. The distribution center is oufitted with touch screens, adaptable workstations, wheelchair ramps and elevators. Walgreens built this facility to handle distribution to its network of stores that was expanding into the South. They have a vision of building more of these regional distribution centers across the country, with another slated to open in Connecticut in 2009.

The original idea for these distribution centers came from Randy Lewis, a Senior VP whose son has autism. In case you’re wondering, this isn’t charity work. All employees are held accountable to the same performance standards and work for the same pay. The distribution center has already proven to be the more cost efficient and productive facility nationwide. These jobs are teaching life skills and helping provide a feeling of self worth and value to the employees. And they’re providing income and a career to those that need it. “A National Organization on Disability survey found that 26 percent of people with disabilities had annual household incomes below $15,000, compared with 9 percent of those without disabilities.”

There is some video footage in the MSNBC link above, but I’m including a piece of it in a YouTube video here.

I think this is a great thing that Walgreens is doing. It shows a great amount of corporate responsibility. I dream that someday more companies will behave in a similar fashion. I hope you enjoy the story and video as much as I did. Now that’s some good stuff!

Filed Under: Computers And Tech • Family • Life