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Our Service Doesn’t Stop
at the Dock
The Port of New York and New Jersey
provides shippers with rail services
that bring goods to and from markets
along the Eastern Seaboard and beyond.
With two Class I railroads servicing
the port’s three on-dock rail facilities,
our six terminal operators provide
shippers with access to all major world
markets with unparalleled e;ciency.
That’s what we call delivering the goods.
our six terminal operators provide
Visit our online rail transit tool at
www.rail.portnynj.com
30 DC VELOCITY OCTOBER 2018 www.dcvelocity.com
for workers that cost us nothing,
such as schedule adjustments.
Investing in our workers, provid-
ing the resources and support they
need, gives us employees who love
their jobs and appreciate the oppor-
tunity they were given, in turn doing
outstanding work and remaining
loyal to our organization.
QDo you have any concerns for the safety of workers with disabilities?
APeckham does not have any unique safety concerns outside
of what any other employer has. We
monitor incidents just like everyone else.
We invest in training our workers well
and monitor any shifts in data.
For instance, we have many hearing-impaired forklift operators. We speak
with many employers who will not hire
hearing-impaired forklift operators, as
they cannot hear the backup sirens. We
have installed strobe lights on all of our
equipment so that in addition to the
sirens, each truck has flashing lights to
alert other employees that a truck is about
to enter. I would bet our incident rate is
lower than at most other warehouses. It’s
all in the training.
Q What must employers do to create an inclusive culture?
A As employers, we are at an advantage if we shift our thinking from looking
at people with disabilities as a burden
to thinking about them as a strength for
the work force. Disability is just another
part of diversity. Every employer should
want a more diverse and inclusive environment. We believe that inclusion drives
innovation.
Q What advice would you offer employ- ers looking to get started?
APartner with your local vocation- al rehabilitation organizations to
recruit, hire, and retain individuals with
disabilities. There are many organizations similar to Peckham that are looking
to partner with employers who want to
make concerted efforts to hire people
with disabilities.
Check out other resources, including
ODEP (Office of Disability Employment
Policy), JAN (Job Accommodation
Network), EARN (Employer Assistance
and Resource Network), and USBLN (US
Business Leadership Network).
Start small and remember it’s a journey.
We don’t have it all figured out and probably never will; but constantly listening,
asking questions, and working toward
the goal and mission of treating everyone
with respect will yield incredible results.
Editor’s note: To hear the stories of
several Peckham employees, visit the organization’s Facebook page at https://www.
facebook.com/peckhaminc/.
