Gütersloh, 02/28/2024

Bertelsmann Action Plan for Inclusion in Germany Enters Fifth Year Of Implementation

Subject: Employees
Country: Germany
Category: Project

Since 2019, the Bertelsmann Inclusion Action Plan has been in place to help improve accessibility in our German Group companiesy and raise awareness about the inclusion of people with disabilities. On February 7, during a virtual annual review, the Action Plan core team provided information on the progress made in implementing the plan over the past 12 months.

The implementation of the Bertelsmann Action Plan for Inclusion has now been ongoing for four years. At a virtual annual review with around 70 participants, coordinators, supporters, and inclusion officers from all over Germany convened in February to learn about the progress made in implementing the action plan and to discuss priorities for the upcoming final year of its implementation.

The colleagues reviewed the status of the 69 measures, the aim of which is to design processes and structures in all German Group companies – by the end of this year – in such a way that employees with disabilities can work without barriers and contribute to Bertelsmann’s success with all their skills and knowledge.

Many measures already implemented

This year’s evaluation shows that many of the measures – such as the revision of Bertelsmann’s travel policy to take into account the individual needs of people with disabilities – have already been implemented within the Group. The focus is now on implementing eight further measures. This means that all 69 agreed measures will have been addressed by the end of the action plan’s term.

At the end of the meeting, Gabriele McNab, Group representative for employees with disabilities in Germany, called on everyone involved to continue to jointly drive forward the measures of the action plan this year, and to keep the topic of “inclusion of people with disabilities” on the agenda, on both a large and small scale. She also emphasized the importance of the many supporters at the locations who play a crucial role in making visible barriers in everyday working life and the associated challenges.

A summary of the evaluation report can be found here.