Improved score marks continuing effort in growing inclusive culture to support people with disabilities

For the second year in a row, Astellas has been included in the Disability Equality Index as a “Best Place to Work for Disability Inclusion” by Disability:IN and the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD). This year our score rose from 90 to a top score of 100. The Disability Equality Index® (DEI) is the world’s most comprehensive benchmarking tool for the Fortune 1000 and Am Law 200 to measure disability workplace inclusion against competitors.

“Disability inclusion is an important driver of innovation by bringing together colleagues with unique and valuable skills throughout the organization that help us create new solutions to improve patient care.” said Frank Hudson, senior vice president, R&D Finance and executive sponsor of Astellas’ Abilities Employee Impact Group. “The improvement in our score reflects the continual progress to grow our diverse culture that values contributions of all employees and strives to create a collaborative and inclusive workplace.”

Our Abilities Employee Impact Group (Abilities EIG) at Astellas leads an alliance of passionate and committed employees who aim to raise awareness of the impact that physical, mental and emotional disabilities have on the Astellas community. Employees or family members with disabilities and allies make up this strong network of advocates that also supports each other to live up to their fullest potential. Since cancer was designated by the US Government as a disability, the Abilities EIG launched the Astellas Cancer Support group for employees and their family who are either cancer patients, survivors or care givers to be able to share within a community of trust and confidentiality and receive emotional support.

Learn more about the Abilities EIG in this video:

In addition, Astellas works to foster a Culture of Caring and offers its employees and families incredible well-being programs like our Family Care Solutions. These programs support employees and family members to address a variety of life challenges including caring for elderly parents, unexpected childcare needs and extensive help for employees and families living with disabilities.

“The Disability Equality Index shines a spotlight on companies that believe they have a stake in creating a more equitable society for people with disabilities.” said Maria Town, President and CEO of AAPD. “It is a conduit for our work championing disability rights for the 60 million Americans with disabilities and knocking down barriers to employment, technology and healthcare, and we're thrilled to see the progress being made today.”

Learn more about Astellas’ commitment to people living with disabilities here.