News

• 26 June, 2017

Creativity, innovation and a fresh perspective are key drivers for growth in any business and are often lacking in today’s workforce. People with disabilities (PWD’s) may be the key to fill this gap. However, to capture this talent and gain these benefits, organizations need to let go of preconceived ideas about hiring people with disabilities (PWDs) to eliminate barriers to employment, create a culture of openness, trust and opportunity to successfully build an inclusive workforce. To aid in this, we have provided you with some key considerations for businesses to consider and you can find out more information at our upcoming Breakfast talk

Improving Participation Rates

Whilst many businesses are passionate about employment equality and diversity, companies often have difficulties in creating strategies for recruiting PWDs. Examples of such strategies include working with HR agencies and professionals to create paid internships specifically for bright and talented PWDs. However, in order to do this successfully, it’s important to start with addressing common preconceived ideas that employers have on this subject.

Changing preconceived ideas

Employers’ preconceived ideas prevent them from reaping the value of having PWD within their organization. The most common preconceptions are This is going to cost me a lot of money,  It’s going to be time-consuming, PWDs will need too much time off, and I can’t treat a person with a disability the same as their non-disabled counterpart.  However, according to a recent study by Deloitte Canada these preconceived ideas tend to be false as:

• 90% of disabled employees did the job better or just as well as their non-disabled colleagues.
• 86% rated average or better in attendance.
• When accommodation is necessary for PWDs, 20% cost nothing and 50% cost less than $500.
• The talent pool is decreasing.
• PWDs contribute to creativity, innovation and problem solving.

Another area that has been of particular concern to employers is that accommodating PWDs is a challenge. However, experts in this area often say that becoming a bit more open minded is all that is required. Take the example of a warehouse worker, do they really need to lift 50 pounds over their head when a forklift is available to everyone? Maybe I could hire the person with one arm because they can easily and effectively operate the forklift.

Moving forward

Hiring PWDs has both business and ethical value that is unavailable otherwise. However, it is important that companies take action on their desire for a more equal and diverse workplace by working towards open-minded strategies that accommodate PWDs. However, in order to successfully do this it’s important to address the preconceived ideas that employers may have when hiring PWDs.

To learn more about the benefits of hiring PWDs as well as practical ways of complying with forthcoming accessible workplace legislation in Cambodia, make sure to register for our upcoming Breakfast talk.