SBR Announces a New, First of Its Kind ABLE Match Incentive for its Employees

By Madeline Tieri, Human Resources Specialist, Supportive Behavioral Resources, Inc. 

Supportive Behavioral Resources, Inc.(SBR) is an agency service provider for adults with Intellectual Disabilities and Autism (ID/A) in Philadelphia, PA. SBR is celebrating their 30th anniversary this October 2024. Since their inception, SBR has always kept the people they support at the forefront of their mission. Not only are they dedicated to providing quality services, but they also take pride in offering many resources and benefits to their employees and to the families of the people they serve. Due to the workforce crisis, many families have had no other choice but to be both family members and paid caretakers. SBR is supporting these families by hiring them as Direct Support Professionals to work directly with their loved one. The ID/A system does not pay very much for these services, so it is important to SBR that we provide many benefits to their employees.

I have had the opportunity to grow with SBR for almost 10 years. I, too, started out as a Direct Support Professional, moved into Human Resources and now I am working on events and new initiatives for the agency that are both fun and meaningful. I was excited to hear about all the national educational opportunities that ABLE today provides to self-advocates, family members and caregivers through its national #PledgeInclusion partnership with U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). 

As a mother of three beautiful children, two biological boys and a foster daughter, I knew the ABLE program embodied the core values of SBR. My second son, 4-year-old Max, has Down syndrome and he inspires me every day! I want to help create a world where my son is celebrated for who he is. I want to ensure that he can live independently and experience financial freedom to whatever extent he can. When I learned about an ABLE account, I couldn't wait to set up his account (which we immediately did in our home state of New Jersey).

I didn’t want to stop there, and I wanted my colleagues, friends and fellow parents and caregivers to also learn about the power of ABLE accounts. I helped spearhead, with the support of ABLE today and PA ABLE, Pennsylvania’s ABLE program, a series of free ABLE trainings for our SBR employees. 

Working alongside our SBR leadership, we also announced a first-of-its ABLE match program — for every employee who contributes to an ABLE account, SBR will match 2% each pay of any employee’s salary. I am so proud of this benefit and the changes that it will make in people’s lives. 

To learn more about how your employer can partner with ABLE today for ABLE education as well as establishing ABLE workplace benefit programs like SBR, please get in touch with our ABLE today team.