National Organization on Disability Announces Winners of 2017 Leading Disability Employer Seal

SPRINGFIELD, Mass., Sept. 12 -- Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance, a life insurance company, issued the following news release:

The National Organization on Disability (NOD) today announced 45 organizations that have been selected to receive the 2017 NOD Leading Disability Employer Seal™. Now in its second year, the Seal recognizes companies that demonstrate exemplary employment practices for people with disabilities. This annual recognition is designed to applaud those organizations that are leading the way in disability hiring and to encourage additional companies to tap into the many benefits of hiring talent with disabilities, including strong consumer preference for companies that employ individuals with disabilities and greater employee engagement across the workforce.

The winning organizations were announced at NOD's annual disability employment forum, Inclusion by Design, sponsored by PwC and hosted by The Boeing Company and are being celebrated using the campaign hashtag #NODdisabilityemployer.

"The National Organization on Disability is a labor-market leader with a mission to break down the wall that separates the abilities and aspirations of 57 million Americans from the avenues of opportunity, achievement, and fulfillment that come from productive employment," said NOD Chairman Governor Tom Ridge. "We help America put ability to work. And so do the winners of this year's NOD Leading Disability Employer Seal. We thank these leading companies for their commitment to building a disability inclusive workforce."

The 2017 NOD Leading Disability Employer Seal winners are:

Abbott

Accenture

Aetna

Anthem

AT&T

Barclays

Bath VA Medical Center

The Boeing Company

Booz Allen Hamilton

Capital One

Colorado Springs Utilities

Comcast Corporation

Consumers Energy

The Dow Chemical Co.

DTE Energy

DXC Technology

Eli Lilly and Company

EY

The Hershey Company

Hilton

Horizon BCBS of New Jersey

Huntington

JetBlue

Kaiser Permanente

KeyBank

KPMG

Lexmark International

Lockheed Martin

Marriott International

MassMutual

Merck

Moffitt Cancer Center

National Security Agency

New Editions Consulting

Nielsen

Northrop Grumman

Old National Bank

Pacific Gas and Electric Co.

Project HIRED

Prudential Financial

PwC

S&P Global

Sempra Energy

Syracuse VA Medical Center

TD Bank

The NOD Leading Disability Employer Seal is awarded based on data furnished by companies in response to NOD's Disability Employment Tracker™, a free, confidential, online assessment and benchmarking of companies' disability inclusion programs in the following areas:

Climate & Culture

People Practices

Talent Sourcing

Workplace & Technology

Strategy & Metrics

While the Tracker is confidential, organizations may opt to be considered for the NOD Leading Disability Employer Seal. Responses are scored, taking into account both disability employment practices and performance. Scoring prioritizes practices that are associated with increased disability employment outcomes over time, and companies receive additional points based on the percentage of people with disabilities in their workforce.

The Disability Employment Tracker™ was developed by NOD in partnership with the National Business and Disability Council (NBDC) at The Viscardi Center and Mercer | Sirota. Offered annually, the Tracker was introduced in 2013 with lead support from the Exelon Foundation and guidance from leading research firm J.D. Power.

To be considered for the 2018 NOD Leading Disability Employer Seal, companies must complete the Disability Employment Tracker during the qualifying window. Pre-register now for the 2018 Disability Employment Tracker, opening October 1, 2017, or sign up to be notified when the 2018 qualifying window opens.