Diversity, equality, inclusion – we hear employers shout about them through the rooftops but how many of them actually promote these values in the workplace? One recently-launched book might just be the wake-up call we didn’t know we needed.
Disabled people continue to face discrimination on the job market, with an employment rate 30% below average, despite them having at least the same diverse range of skills, talents, and abilities as the rest of the population.
The problem lies as much in the inaccessible recruitment processes and working conditions, as in the myths and preconceptions employers have built around disabled people. We’re concerned they might be less productive than other staff, have higher rates of sickness absence, or just be a general health and safety risk for the company. We view employing a candidate with a disability more as a noble ‘act of charity’ rather than a wise business decision.
Jane Hatton, founder and director of Evenbreak, the UK’s only specialist job board run by disabled people for disabled people, recently released a book to combat employers’ prejudice and reluctance to hire more inclusively. Jane is an award-winning entrepreneur and published author, on a mission to help employers attract and retain more talented disabled candidates through an inclusive Job Board and an online Best Practice Portal.
“I had spent many years promoting the ‘business case’ for employing disabled people. In looking for evidence to support this, I found it was available, but in various places, out of date, or not pulled together in one place.
“So I realised there was a need for a book which drew together research, studies, examples and case studies demonstrating how businesses benefit by employing disabled people. A Dozen Brilliant Reasons to Employ Disabled People was the result,” Jane told the In-house Recruitment Network.
The book is intended to challenge perceptions of disabled people in the workplace. “Opening up recruitment to disabled people means that employers are able to access an immense range of valuable and diverse talent they may not find anywhere else. Employing disabled people can bring in new ideas, new ways of thinking and help the organisation reach disabled customers worth around £249 billion every year in the UK alone.”
A Dozen Brilliant Reasons to Employ Disabled People was launched on 30 November 2017 in London, as part of an event hosted by Microsoft to advocate for more disability inclusion in the workplace. The book is available both in paperback and Kindle format.
Last year, Evenbreak was also a category partner for the Best Diversity and Inclusion Award at the 2017 In-house Recruitment Awards. Check out Jane’s interview with category finalist Leeds Teaching Hospitals about their inspiring work to welcome talent from all walks of life.
