The world’s only global job board for disabled people, Evenbreak, has created its first TV commercial aimed at disabled looking for new or better work, highlighting the typical stereotypes disabled people experience on a daily basis and the challenges applying for work.
The commercial will air for the first time during Rosie Jones’ documentary Rosie Jones: Am I a R*tard that explores ableism trolling, airing on Channel 4, 10pm tonight (Thursday, July 20, 2023). The actors used in the ad are all Evenbreak employees and disabled people themselves, adding further authenticity to the message. The advert will also be in British Sign Language (BSL) and contain subtitles.
Evenbreak is a social enterprise run by disabled people for disabled people. The job board brings disabled candidates together with inclusive employers and introduces employers to premium candidates who enable them to create a representative workforce.
Jones’ controversially titled documentary has seen criticism from within the disabled community. The Bridlington-born comic, who has cerebral palsy, has even seen contributors pull out due to the use of the word r*tard in the title.
Evenbreak founder Jane Hatton said she supports Jones’ stance on confronting disability trolling online and making technology platforms accountable for this hate crime: “I am delighted we can show our support to Rosie Jones who is a brave and essential commentator for disabled people. I absolutely understand why the ‘R’ word can be so devastating to many disabled people.
“If you choose not to watch the documentary, that’s completely understandable (I think it’s actually aimed at non-disabled people to raise awareness – us disabled people already know the long-lasting and real damage ableism causes). And you can still catch our advert in The Last Leg the following evening. In the meantime, disabled people need to support each other in fighting ableism. However we choose to do that (and we’re all different), ableism is our common enemy.”
Featuring members of the Evenbreak team as candidates, the film demonstrates the challenges faced by disabled people applying for work, travelling and attending interviews, revealing the experiences of Mahomed Khatri who is blind, Rele Laguda a wheelchair user who has a spinal injury caused by a car accident and Rachael Salt who is deafened.
Evenbreak aims to readdress the statistic that disabled people are twice as likely to be out of work by raising awareness of its job board and the opportunities available. The job board also seeks to educate employers that, because of their lived experience, disabled candidates are natural problem solvers, astute project managers and above all determined – essential skills for today’s workforce. Evenbreak also trains mainstream employers in how to support their disabled employees.
Hatton added: “We have been working since 2011 to readdress the employment opportunities for disabled people, who are much more likely to be out of work than non-disabled people. We wanted to create an awareness campaign that demonstrated how challenging the recruitment process can be, but also highlight how we can support disabled people to introduce them to inclusive employers as the premium candidates they are.
“Huge thanks to our team members Mahomed, Rele and Rachael who did a brilliant job acting the part of the candidates and Freddie and the team at digiio for volunteering their creative production services to enable us to create this commercial.”
Creative Director and Head of Film of digiio, Freddie Hutton-Mills, added: “Since meeting the Evenbreak team a couple of years ago and hearing their purpose and passion that runs throughout the business, I have been desperate to find a project we could support them with so this advert has been a real honour. The team live and breathe their business and want to reach as many disabled people as possible to add value and support to their lives and to think we could be a part of that makes our job all the more worthwhile. The team were fantastic to work with and we hope this makes a real difference to their business.”
digiio is a creative agency that works with purposeful clients to grow their businesses and strengthen their presence in the markets that matter using insightful creativity and visual expertise.
