“Disability need not be an obstacle to success.” – Stephen Hawking
People with Disabilities (PwD) include those with long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments. They account for 2.21% of the country’s population (while the actual number is said to be higher) but make up for only 0.5% of employees working in the private sector.
A study conducted by Accenture shows, the companies that focus on PwD inclusion and engagement reported four times more profit and three times more sales than their counterparts.
While there has been a noticeable rise in initiatives undertaken by various companies to make the workplace more inclusive, the advancement is slow with limited impact.
Disabled or abled, we all have the responsibility to make society more inclusive for everyone. Here are a few ways in which we can do so:
Focus on people’s capabilities and strengths: All have strengths and capabilities including people with disabilities. Skill and strength-based hiring are some metrics of Diversity Hiring. It is recommended that we hire people with disabilities for their capabilities, skills, and strengths instead of their disability.
See them as an asset and not a liability: Studies show that people with disabilities are excellent in problem-solving, have a lot of persistence and determination, keen observations, pay attention to detail, spot patterns and mistakes, are creative and ambitious, to name a few. Hence, there must be a shift in the mindset of the organizations, and viewing PwD as assets and not liabilities,
View the disability community as a valuable consumer: People with disabilities comprise a considerable part of the population in the world, yet they are the most underrepresented when it comes to marketing products. There is a great deal of diversity within the disabled community itself, and those consumer segments have significant purchasing power.
Be a buddy or mentor: It is a known fact that people with disabilities need a little extra help in doing things. Nominating yourself as a buddy or mentor to them at the workplace will make them feel inclusive. And an inclusive workplace is a happy and productive workplace.
Disability awareness training: There are many training programs developed to improve disability awareness. These training programs aim to create a more inclusive and accessible workplace by providing information and sensitization to work effectively with colleagues with disabilities.
They are human beings too: Treat them with due respect without any bias. Do not sympathize but empathize with them and take the opportunity to help them or assist whenever and wherever needed.
