When you are unemployed and looking for a job, both non-disabled and disabled people can struggle to find employment, especially if you are fresh out of college and don’t have experience, or are in my situation and don’t have a college degree. It can be difficult for anyone to find a job, but it is even more challenging when you are disabled because employers often look at you and think you are incapable, and the unemployment rate is higher amongst disabled people. Disabled people need to make money like non-disabled people do because we have bills just like everyone else, but it can be hard when employers discriminate and won’t give you a chance. Disabled people can be very valuable in the workplace and I wish employers understood that having a disabled employee doesn’t hold you back, but it can help grow your business. Why should businesses hire a disabled employee? In this post, I am going to share a few reasons why businesses should have at least one disabled employee.
It shows you are inclusive- Many businesses will swear that they are inclusive but do not have a single disabled employee. I have a hard time believing business owners who say they are inclusive but refuse to hire disabled people and make their business accessible because if you really were inclusive you would have disabled employees. When you have disabled employees it shows me that you truly are trying to be inclusive and aren’t just saying that because it sounds good and you don’t want to be sued. I am more likely to support a business that shows they are trying to be inclusive and tell my friends about it even if you don’t get it right all of the time. Disability inclusion is so important for businesses to consider especially if you are providing a service that could benefit disabled people because not being inclusive will make disabled people frustrated and could cause you to lose business. Hire disabled people because you can’t say you’re inclusive if you treat your disabled employee poorly or refuse to hire us in the first place. I wish businesses understood how many more customers you could get by simply being inclusive.
We can teach you how to make your business more accessible– As a disabled person, I will shop at stores that are a little inaccessible but I will not give my money to stores that are so inaccessible that I can barely navigate because it infuriates. I will not shop at an American Eagle for myself nor will I buy a gift for someone else at that store because I had a bad experience shopping experience where the store was so inaccessible I could barely get through the front door which infuriated me so much. Non-disabled people do not understand accessibility to the extent a disabled person does which is why every business needs a disabled employee that can teach them what it means to be accessible. I think that the reason a lot of businesses are so inaccessible isn’t always because they don’t want to but a lot of the time people think they are accessible when they are not. If you hire a disabled person, we can help make your business more accessible which will increase your sales because disabled people are more likely to shop at accessible businesses.
We can connect with people in ways non-disabled people can’t- Disabled people can be very valuable in healthcare settings because we understand what it’s like to live with health challenges and connect to people in ways that non-disabled people can’t. Doctors can be sympathetic toward medical conditions but most doctors don’t have the health challenges they are treating and can’t say they understand what someone is going through like a person who has that condition can. Disabled people often have more negative experiences in healthcare than non-disabled people because we have to go to the doctor more often which means we sometimes have to deal with more arrogant doctors that cause a lot of medical trauma. I think that the only way that might change is if doctors’ offices started hiring disabled people who are more sympathetic toward medical conditions. Disabled people sometimes make better receptionists, medical assistants, and doctors because we can connect with people in ways non-disabled people can’t. If you want people to be less scared of going to the doctor, you need to hire someone who understands health challenges and educate yourself on ableism. Disabled people often are more sympathetic toward health challenges than non-disabled people because we know what to say to someone who is nervous about having surgery and has been there ourselves.
We can help you be less ableist– Disabled people often have a lot of negative experiences with their doctor because of ableism which I am assuming is not always on purpose and people just don’t know what it is and how harmful it is toward disabled people. What is ableism? Ableism if a form of discrimination toward disabled people with the idea that disabled people need to be fixed and all disabilities need cures. Disabled people understand ableism more than non-disabled people and can recognize it more easily, but anyone can be ableist and it’s something we all can work on getting better at. Non-disabled people sometimes are more ableist without realizing it because they aren’t affected by it as much as disabled people. People sometimes say ableist comments on a regular basis and have no idea which is not good for businesses because it can turn a positive experience into a negative one and make disabled people not want to come back. I think that all businesses should either educate themselves on ableism or hire a disabled employee who can call you out on it because it will improve someone’s experience.
Disabled people sometimes are more reliable– People often think that disabled people are less reliable and will call out of work all the time because of their health challenges but that is only sometimes true. Disabled people sometimes are more reliable because it’s more expensive to be disabled and we need more money to pay for medical supplies. Are you struggling to find a reliable employee? Hire a disabled person because depending on what disability we have sometimes we are more reliable and take less sick days than non-disabled people.
We have different skills- When it comes to disability people often focus on all the things disabled people can’t do and assume we are incapable of everything. There are things that my disability prevents me from doing but because of my disability, there are some skills that I have that you wouldn’t need without a disability. Disabled people have different skills than non-disabled people because we need to use different skills to be able to function. I am different but that is not always bad because my disability gives me skills that non-disabled people do not have that could be beneficial in the workplace.
Disabled people in the workplace can be so valuable because we can help business owners make their businesses more accessible and connect with customers in ways that non-disabled people can’t. People sometimes think that hiring a disabled person holds them back because it is often assumed we can’t do the job as effectively as non-disabled people, which is not true and we can help you grow. We need more disability representation in the workplace, and the only way you are going to get that is by hiring disabled people and stop assuming my abilities without asking. Disabled people struggle to get and stay employed because people make wrongful assumptions about us, but that could change if employers hired people based on their skills rather than their disability. Why do you think businesses should hire disabled people? If you liked this post, please leave a comment below and share it with your friends.
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