We had our yearly meeting on Saturday. It was the typical “hooray for us” sort of thing that I heard while working for Walmart. Mostly, it dealt with the business but it also covered things like our culture and so forth.
Then we covered “inclusion”. The definition that Costco gave was very vague: we include diverse opinions and religions and areas of the world, that sort of thing. We were shown a couple of images that were supposed to highlight inclusion but I noticed something immediately.
But here’s what I noticed about the so-called “inclusion”:
Not one person in a wheelchair.
Not one person on crutches.
Not one person with a service animal.
Not one person missing a limb.
Quite literally, everyone in those images were able-bodied; if they had any disabilities, they were the hidden type. Every human being shown was standing up and in the middle of doing some kind of physical labor.
Quite literally, no disabled people were shown. None.
I don’t like what that says about our company. If anything, it really seems like we only pay lip service to the idea of diversity and inclusion, while actively discriminating against those who may be physically challenged. It’s not a good look for us, I’ll be the first to admit. Hell, even Walmart does better!
Walmart absolutely blows when it comes to paying a living wage, but they’re far more likely to hire someone who is wheelchair bound, or needs a cane to maintain their balance. Walmart can and has hired people who had physical disabilities and managed to keep these associates for years! Why does Costco have a problem with this?
I honestly don’t know exactly how long Costco can keep doing this. I fear that one day it will all catch up with us in the form of a lawsuit.
Iacon East 