19 May 2006

Lehman Brothers wins special award for disability excellence at 2006 Best Workplaces Awards

The Employers' Forum on Disability and Lehman Brothers, the global investment bank, are delighted to announce that Lehman Brothers was honoured with a Special Award for Disability Excellence in the Best Workplaces U.K. 2006 survey, published in the Financial Times. Lehman Brothers also ranked in the Top 50 Best Workplaces in the U.K. for the second consecutive year, illustrating an ongoing commitment to creating a best practice working environment for its staff.

The Disability Excellence award, supported by the Employers' Forum on Disability, the U.K.'s leading employers' organisation focused on disability, recognised Lehman Brothers' outstanding efforts to promote diversity and raise awareness both internally and externally on issues relating to disability in the workplace.

Lehman Brothers' commitment to promoting best practice for employees with a disability was consolidated in March 2004 with the formation of a European Disability Working Forum which focuses on promoting change, raising awareness, building relationships with external bodies and increasing applications from disabled candidates. The initiatives and achievements led by the Forum have included:

exceeding accessibility requirements in its European headquarters in London
developing a successful Summer Intern Program for disabled students
partnering with disability charities and websites to promote employment opportunities
a variety of initiatives to educate our partner disability organisations about the wealth of opportunities in the banking industry
front desk reception staff being trained in British Sign Language

Presenting the award, Phil Friend, OBE, forum associate and founder of the U.K.'s leading disability consultancy, Churchill, Minty & Friend, highlighted that Lehman Brothers had made significant progress in a sometimes challenging environment.

On the award, Jeremy Isaacs, chief executive officer of Lehman Brothers, Europe and Asia, commented

“We are committed to promoting diversity and raising awareness on issues relating to disability in the workplace. This award represents significant recognition of our efforts to sustain a best practice working environment for all employees and I am delighted that we are making a real difference.”

Susan Scott-Parker, chief executive of the Employers' Forum on Disability, added:

“Lehman Brothers has shown extraordinary leadership and creativity in its convincing business case for challenging disability issues in the workplace. I am particularly impressed by how the company has moved the agenda forward significantly by engaging directly with people with disabilities. We look forward to partnering with Lehman Brothers as they continue to invest in becoming truly disability confident.”

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For further information, please contact the Press Office

Employers' Forum on Disability
Telephone: 020 7089 3020
Mobile: 07754 522 521
Email: issy.rule@employers-forum.co.uk