Simple ways to make hiring more inclusive for disabled people
By Jo Faragher on 29 May 2024
The disability employment gap continues to be high. According to the latest UK government figures, the employment rate of people with disabilities in December 2023 was 54.2%, compared to a rate of 82% for those who are not disabled. How organisations attract and recruit disabled candidates plays a significant role in the fact so many remain out of work or economically inactive, often favouring people who can excel at parts of the process, such as an interview or application statement, rather than considering their potential.
Jane Hatton, director of award-winning job board for disabled people Evenbreak, sums it up like this: “We tend to talk about past privilege rather than future potential. Even if people send in CVs anonymously, work experience and qualifications can be misleading,” she explains. “If you’ve been discriminated against, your work history is less likely to look impressive. This isn’t because disabled people cannot do great jobs, perhaps they might have been battling against a system that didn’t work for them. They’ve not been given those opportunities because of recruiters’ assumptions.”
Rethinking ‘standard’ elements of the hiring process such as demanding that candidates send CVs or attend several rounds of interviews can level the playing field more than businesses might expect, she adds. “Look at each job you’re trying to fill – what are the three or four ‘must-haves’ rather than a ‘laundry list’ of criteria that no-one will fit. Then think about how candidates can demonstrate these, and that doesn’t have to be in an interview or high-pressure situation. Interviews only test the ability of a candidate to be good at interviews – we’re not testing the right things.” Similarly, focusing on a CV referencing an exact role or responsibility can be limiting; someone may have picked up a skill such as attention to detail in an unrelated role and still be perfect for the job. The Department for Work and Pensions published new guidance in April for employers on better supporting people with disabilities or long-term health conditions, which includes a section on recruitment.
Skills-based approach
“Those who suffer from poor mental health, neurodiverse individuals and anyone whose first language is not English are prime examples of candidates who can be inadvertently penalised by traditional recruitment practices,” says Jackie Torr, member services director at APSCo, which represents recruitment and staffing companies. “As a case in point, CVs are not a great way for someone who is dyslexic to sell their talent. There are also flaws with face-to-face interviews. Not only can the requirement for physical in-person meetings be difficult for those with mobility difficulties, but neurodivergent individuals may also struggle being in a busy office environment.” Torr adds that candidates with anxiety could struggle with the interview process, while someone who has hearing impairments may find it difficult to answer questions in the way an interviewer expects – both could benefit from seeing questions beforehand.
It’s important for hiring managers to consider that every disabled or neurodivergent person is an individual, so it’s important to ask what they need. “Most important in my view is that interviews and the entire hiring process should be based on the skills and innate traits, not on the way people look, sound or act,” she advises. APSCo’s Embrace forum offers a platform for recruiters to share stories on how they have boosted diverse hiring practices as well as access expert advice from others (Evenbreak is a member). “This includes making sure the job description is accurate and only contains a maximum of five absolutely essential strengths as well as offering adjustments in a friendly way. For example, rather than asking ‘Are you disabled? What do you need?’, saying ‘We want all of our candidates to shine in our recruitment process. Please tell us what we can do to ensure it works for you’ can be a better approach,” she adds.
Janine Chidlow, Managing Director of WilsonHCG, a recruitment specialist, agrees that too many elements of the traditional recruitment process are too rigid. She says: “I’m a real advocate for skills-first hiring where a potential candidate is assessed for their potential and core abilities in relation to a role. For that reason, I also believe that some traditional job specifications and adverts can hinder diverse hiring for some, including disabled applicants. If, for example, either of these elements mention that a candidate needs to have strong social and communications abilities, despite there being no real requirement for these for the job itself, neurodiverse applicants could be put off applying. It is crucial that any attributes mentioned in an advert are truly critical for the role, rather than a ‘nice-to-have’.”
Chidlow advocates for more flexibility in how individuals apply for roles and the mechanisms used in the interview process. “Not all application forms or even career sites are accessible to those with visual impairments or dyslexia, for example. Potential new recruits should be treated as customers. If a brand is providing every possible adjustment to make the customer journey as easy as possible to those with a disability, this should be replicated in the candidate experience,” she adds. One option for employers is to insist on working with suppliers who are accredited as Disability Confident. “Having a database of diverse suppliers and partners that are recognised by third parties like this will give you access to the best tools and advice,” she says. “On a broader level, however, businesses should ensure that applicant assessments are both unbiased and accessible. Offering a range of means for individuals to demonstrate why they are right for the job – from pre-recorded video interviews, to one-to-one phone calls – is advisable.”
Wasted effort
And while focusing on inclusive processes is crucial, this will be a wasted effort if people join the organisation and do not feel truly welcome, says Ellie Thompson, communications lead at Diversity & Ability. “What we know is that the main challenges disabled people face in recruitment is not being able to trust that their diversity will be celebrated and welcomed at an organisation, rather than seen as a burden. This challenge might be reinforced by more tangible barriers (inaccessible application documents, lack of transparency around the application process, hidden salaries)… but even if you are trying to make your recruitment process accessible, your efforts will fall short unless you make inclusion the foundation of every stage of the employee lifecycle,” she advises.
Within the process itself, one of the biggest barriers faced by disabled people in applying for roles is offering open-ended, non-specific calls to action such as “let us know if you require adjustments”. “This puts the onus on the candidate to ask for needs (that may or may not be met) in a process which is inherently vulnerable,” she adds. D&A offers the AXS Passport, a tool that can take the guesswork out of adjustments for both individuals and employers. “It’s a digital interface through which individuals can share all of their accessibility and inclusion needs in one place – everything from their pronouns, to step-free access,” explains Thompson.
“They get to maintain ownership of their own personal information, so they can have confidence they are only sharing what they want to share, when they want to share it, and with who they want to share it with. We use it throughout every stage of our own employee journey, from the very beginning of recruitment, because it enables every single employee to share as much of themselves as they want to.” D&A has used this approach in recruiting its own employees, and Thompson says this has been game-changing. She adds: “Although we are a diverse team, what’s more rewarding for us is seeing the sense of belonging and community we’ve created, with a culture in which everyone feels safe to innovate. This all starts with going out of our way to let our employees know, right from the beginning, that their diversity and individuality is celebrated at D&A.”
Ultimately, offering adjustments at the hiring stage can be of little to no cost, so organisations should not shy away from being as inclusive as possible of disabled candidates. Jane Hatton of Evenbreak lists some of the most popular requests:
- Flexible working hours to avoid the rush hour
- Working remotely for some or part of the week
- Being exempt from hot-desking
- Keeping walkways free of trip hazards
- Giving clear, unambiguous instructions
- Parking available close to the building
“This all takes very little effort,” she concludes. “My question to recruiters who are resistant is, ‘is what you’re doing now bringing you the quality and diversity of candidates you need?’ If not, it can’t hurt to try.”
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