Seek talent beyond familiar types of disabilities, say researchers

Researchers from IIT-Madras conducted a study aimed at understanding the reasons certain kinds of disabilities are deterrents to hiring; universal design principles necessary at workplaces, they said

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M), conducted a study to understand the difference in employment rates among persons with different types of disabilities. The study was aimed at understanding the reasons certain kinds of disabilities are deterrents to hiring.

Researchers Lata Dyaram, associate professor at the institute’s Management Studies department, and her doctoral student Vasanthi Suresh interviewed leaders of 17 public and private sector organisations. They found that stereotypical views or unconscious bias to some types of disabilities and factors such as cost of workplace adjustments, accessibility and value addition that they see from past experience determine hiring decisions.

While public sector organisations are under pressure to comply with legislations and mandates, the private sector relies on customer and industry-related trends. Contextual factors also determine the influence the decisions an employer makes. Familiarity with the disability, bias and architectural barriers besides external pressures unique to the organisation such as industry trends, customer biases and quota system play a key role, the study found.