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It is vital that businesses do as much as they can to support employment of people with disabilities and not just because of the 2010 Equality Act. A report from the House of Commons found that there were 7.7 million people of working age that reported that they were disabled in April-June 2020, which is as much as 19% of the working-age population. 4.1 million of these were in employment, which is an increase of 97,000 from the year before.
Businesses need to support employees that have disabilities or potential employees and introduce policies that will enable them to thrive and get the most out of their job. With this in mind, here are 6 ways to empower your company’s policy for employees with a disability.
Providing a Transportation Plan
One of the biggest challenges for many people with a disability when it comes to employment is transport. This is why businesses can support their staff by providing a transportation plan, which could include the use of an adapted car that could either be driven by someone with a disability or make the transportation of a wheelchair safe and easy.
Implement Technology & Create a Modern Workplace
Technology has the ability to empower people of all abilities and can help people to overcome a variety of challenges. As a business leader, you should be looking to implement technology and create a modern workplace that allows people of all abilities to work to the best of their abilities each day.
Equality Policies
It is important to treat everyone fairly from a moral standpoint, but businesses will also find that a diverse workforce can also be more profitable and can bring a range of other benefits. Equality policies need to be in place to ensure that people are treated fairly in all decisions and that inclusion should be used to embrace people’s differences.
Change Processes That Support Unconscious Bias
It is easy for people to say that they support inclusion and show no bias, but unconscious biases do exist and it is important that these are recognised and processes that support these are removed in order to create true parity. As an example, Microsoft removed their interview process for candidates with autism after realising that this was why people with autism were not getting hired even with the required knowledge and skill set.
Initiate Inclusive Dialogue
In order to create an inclusive culture as well as to identify challenges and opportunities, it is important to initiate inclusive dialogue which will include discussions with employees about what it is like for a person with a disability to work at the company. You can ask for ideas on how the business could be more inclusive as well as educate on the prevention of unconscious bias.
Engage with Community Groups
Businesses should also look outside their own company and to community groups for those with disabilities. In addition to helping you to strengthen the hiring pipelines, this can also be useful for community engagement and getting advice on supporting disabled employees.
Hopefully, this post will encourage you to make positive policy changes to better support those with a disability and benefit from a diverse workforce.
