Accor is marking the International Day of Persons with Disabilities by highlighting strong progress across its Australia-wide Disability Employment Initiative, delivered with the Centre for Social Impact (CSI) at Flinders University. The initiative sits at the core of Accor’s purpose: pioneering responsible hospitality and connecting cultures with heartfelt care.
Following a successful 2024 pilot in South Australia, the Diversity Pathways project launched in Melbourne earlier this year and has since expanded across Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. Accor has now welcomed 35 new Heartists with a cognitive disability into its Pacific operations.
Co-designed with CSI, the initiative follows a structured, multi-phase process focused on building disability awareness, strengthening property-level capability and supporting long-term, meaningful employment. This includes customised role design, pre-employment preparation, collaboration with Disability Employment Services and supported onboarding.
Accor’s Chief Operating Officer Pacific, Adrian Williams, said: “One in five Australians lives with a mental or physical disability. Creating equitable pathways into meaningful employment is one of the most powerful ways our industry can contribute to stronger, more inclusive communities. I love that this partnership with CSI is helping us rethink traditional recruitment approaches, build confidence within our teams, and create roles that celebrate people’s strengths. It is work that’s changing not just our hotels, but lives.”
Dr Jung Yoon, Research Fellow at CSI, added: “I am incredibly grateful to Accor for their passionate and genuine commitment to these initiatives. The collaboration with Accor Pacific truly opens a new pathway to fostering an inclusive workplace and culture by promoting learning about diversity and inclusion and by creating meaningful roles for people with cognitive disabilities. This project would not have been possible without the support of the Accor champions, who will now lead the next generation of champions.”
The initiative forms part of Accor’s wider social impact platform. Support for DV Collective has raised more than $150,000 this year, funding over seventeen thousand safe nights for women and children affected by domestic and family violence. The Group also backed Australia’s first National Silly Sock Day on November 25.
Accor’s partnership with Community Corporate continues to create employment pathways for refugees and migrants. More than two hundred new team members have joined the Group through the collaboration, including seventy this year.
These programmes reflect an integrated approach to social care and Accor’s commitment to inclusive recruitment across the Pacific. The Group continues to expand its Disability Employment Initiative, ensuring guests, Heartists and communities feel valued and supported.
Accor operates more than 400 hotels in the Pacific region across leading brands including Sofitel, MGallery, Pullman, Mövenpick, Novotel, Mercure, Mantra, ibis and Ennismore brands such as SO/, Mondrian and 25hours.
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