Recent research has found that business leaders are wary of hiring disabled people in senior roles. In a display of blatant disablism, the most prevalent reason for not hiring disabled people include the costs of adapting a workplace, while 45% blame the accessibility of their premises and 41% expect disabled people to be off sick a lot. Others said that disabled people would not be able to cope with the stress or the demands of the job.
One third of those surveyed did not feel that their workplace would benefit from hiring disabled people in senior roles. This demonstrates a serious lack of awareness of the capabilities, skills and talents that disabled people have to offer the workplace. Two thirds don’t know any disabled people in these roles, but that’s hardly surprising when they admit they are not hiring them. And the third who do know disabled people at the top should be especially ashamed of their attitudes. They can see what we have to offer and they are still being discriminatory.
Only 11% of business leaders reported that they would have no concerns about hiring disabled people in top jobs. Meaning that 89% would be resistant to the idea.
When hiring new employees, an HR team or company manager should be looking for those with promise who can add to a workplace and offer new skills and talents that would benefit the company or organisation. If those very people are overlooking somebody because they walk in with a stick, have a guide dog or use a wheelchair then they are not doing their jobs correctly.
Look at somebody’s promise. Look at their passions. Look at their experience. Most of all, look at their prospects and what they can contribute to your team. Don’t stop looking for those vital factors just because you catch a glimpse of a mobility aid or a hearing aid.
Reasonable adjustments
One of the fears raised by business leaders in this survey was the potential cost of the reasonable adjustments a disabled person might need to be able to work for them. The reality is that these average at £75, and many of the costs are covered by schemes such as Access to Work, which bought me a gloriously supportive office chair and some helpful accessibility software when I first started freelancing.
If your workplace is so horribly inaccessible that a disabled person wouldn’t be able to get to their office, then I dare say that you are in the wrong building. If potential staff can’t get in then neither can potential customers or potential clients or potential investors who may face the same mobility challenges.
Do you want to miss out on all of those people?
If you don’t interview that woman with mental health problems, you might be missing out on £millions in sales. If you don’t interview the guy with a walking frame and a facial difference, you might be missing out on the leadership a problematic team has been calling out for. If you don’t interview the woman who communicates through a BSL interpreter, you will never know if she could have managed your systems or staff or accounts in a way that is so efficient that it saves you a fortune.
If you do interview them and still don’t hire them – because of your prejudices – then I don’t even know what to say to you. Your attitude needs to be adjusted and your worldview needs to be widened.
It’s not charity
If you hire a disabled person, you are not doing them a favour. They are offering you their skills and experience and they can benefit your company. Like any other employee, you should hire them on their merits and their promise.
Nobody thinks you should hire a disabled person as a form of charity. We think you should hire them when they are the best person for the job. Because they are brilliant. When their wheelchair or their visible difference or their impairment is seen as an impossible hurdle, you are tricking yourself out of ambitious, decent employees who can turn your business around and wow you every day. Just like anyone else you hire should have the potential to do.
There are more than 7 million disabled people in Britain. If you refuse to hire them in senior roles, they are destined to stay in positions that they outgrow, and you will miss out on their potential. That’s if you hire them at all.
A good place to start is with the 11% of business leaders who are happy to hire disabled people in senior roles. But the remaining 89% should be ashamed that they have these attitudes and that they are willing to admit them to pollsters. They should be ashamed that their colleagues and partners broadly agree with them. And they should put schemes in place that prioritise the applications of marginalised people so that they are finally given a chance to shine.
Photo: Smerikal