- On the occasion of International Women's Day, Envera presents the stories of four women with disabilities who break down prejudices through employment.
- Thanks to companies such as ENAIRE and Airbus that support Envera's job placement projects.
Madrid | March 7, 2022
The duality of women and disability is a double discrimination for many people when it comes to accessing a job. According to the Observatory on Disability and the Labor Market in Spain(Odismet), the employment rate of women with disabilities is 26.9% compared to 58.4% of workers without a certificate. Social organizations such as Envera work with companies and public administration to break down walls of prejudice, reduce the gender gap and increase equal opportunities in access to the labor market for women with intellectual disabilities.
This is the case of Lara Madrigal (37) and Sandra Gómez (39), who have been given the opportunity by Prosegur to demonstrate their professionalism as event assistants. After going through Envera's Job Placement Service, whose professionals have advised and accompanied them in the job search process, Lara and Sandra have found in the Prosegur Foundation an entity committed to the inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities.
"It is not easy for companies to find professionals with the commitment and desire that both Lara and Sandra show when it comes to work. At Prosegur we are very happy to have them and we only have words of thanks for their work," says Azucena Fonfría, psychologist and manager of social projects at the Prosegur Foundation.
Lara, who had not worked for three years before joining Prosegur, emphasizes "the good atmosphere" among her colleagues, and for Sandra the work they do is "very important so that others can do their job".
For Envera, access to quality employment for people with disabilities is a priority both in ordinary companies and in the organization itself, which, as a non-profit organization, puts all its efforts into the annual care of 4,800 people with intellectual disabilities and their families and into the creation of stable employment for more than 800 people, 55% of whom have intellectual disabilities.
Among these workers with disabilities whom Envera employs thanks to the support of almost 200 companies, Raquel Francisco (52) works in the Digital Transformation area where "they correct the rejections and duplicities of airline tickets" and make it possible for 2.5 million passengers to travel without incident. A service that requires a high technical qualification and is led by another woman, María José López, who has been managing this department since 1992.
For Raquel, work is one of her main motivations: "After being unemployed for so long, Envera has given me the opportunity to rebuild my life the way I like it.
Another recent addition to the Envera team has been Victoria Galtier (27) who, from the Sales Department, highlights the role of women in the workplace "for what they are worth and what they do". Regarding people with disabilities, she adds that "no one is less or more than anyone else" and asks companies to "give the opportunity" to any professional by looking at what they can do and not what they cannot do.
Jobs such as these women's are a reality thanks to the labor insertion projects that Envera develops with the support of ENAIRE and Airbus, which reflect the commitment of these companies to inclusion and equal opportunities.
Thanks to these collaborations, Envera's Labor Insertion Service trains, prepares and orients future workers so that they can access the labor market. A challenge that is often not easy due to the prejudices that still weigh on disability, especially intellectual disabilities.
In fact, with this sheltered and supported employment, Envera's technicians point out that "not only is it possible to reduce inequality between men and women with and without disabilities, but also to break down stereotypes to promote equal opportunities for all people".
About Envera
Grupo Envera is a non-profit organization founded 45 years ago by Iberia employees, parents of people with intellectual disabilities, whose transparency is accredited by the Fundación Lealtad, and which serves about 5.5,000 people with disabilities and their families in its early care services, neurodevelopment for children and youth, training, job placement, occupational and day centers, residences and guardianship; it employs more than 800 people in its special employment centers and prepares more than 300 athletes (it belongs to Special Olympics); it has the support of 250 volunteers and has a hundred collaborating entities. The following are patrons of its Tutelar Foundation: Iberia, Airbus, Unisys and Hilario Alfaro (president of Madrid Foro Empresarial). It has centers in Madrid, Colmenar Viejo (Madrid), Barcelona, Malaga, Tenerife and Gran Canaria, and Inclusion Points in Madrid, Pozuelo and El Prat.
Envera leads the CSR table of Madrid Foro Empresarial and works on Corporate Social Responsibility as a strategic element of competitiveness and differential value in the customer experience, impacting 11 of the 17 SDGs of the UN's 2030 agenda.
