Physical Disability

Discover better ways to engage with people with disability applicants

Demonstrate a commitment to accessibility and inclusion

Building an inclusive workplace that welcomes people with disability strengthens your organisation’s reputation, broadens your talent pool, and supports long-term workforce participation. By demonstrating your commitment to accessibility and equity, you signal to prospective candidates that they will be supported, respected, and valued.

So make your inclusion efforts visible. Promote your workplace adjustments policy, highlight accessible features in job ads, and share stories of employees with disability succeeding in your workplace. These simple yet powerful actions help attract more candidates with disability and build trust before they even apply.

Drive action with policy

Don’t just talk about disability inclusion, embed it into how your organisation operates. Clear, well-communicated policies show candidates that inclusion is not performative, but backed by real action.

Develop and implement policies on reasonable adjustments, inclusive recruitment, and workplace accessibility. Ensure these are easy to find, simple to understand, and put into practice. When candidates see that your organisation has thought about their needs and built systems to support them, they are more likely to engage and apply.

Bring down the barriers

People with disability often face systemic and practical barriers throughout the employment journey. From inaccessible recruitment systems to workplace environments that haven’t been designed with inclusion in mind. These barriers can prevent qualified candidates from applying, engaging, or staying in meaningful work.

Organisations can take proactive steps to identify and remove these barriers through regular accessibility audits, inclusive recruitment practices, and by listening to people with lived experience. But going further, affirmative action programs can be a valuable tool to level the playing field. These programs may include targeted recruitment campaigns, disability-specific internships, or guaranteed interview schemes for qualified candidates with disability.

Affirmative action doesn’t mean lowering standards, it means recognising that existing systems can unfairly advantage some groups over others. By actively removing structural disadvantage, organisations ensure that people with disability have equitable access to opportunities. When done well, these strategies benefit everyone by creating a stronger, fairer, and more capable workforce.

Find smarter ways for your organisation to recruit people with disability

Create application processes that encourage diversity

Many recruitment processes unintentionally exclude people with physical disability due to inaccessible digital platforms, rigid application formats, or unclear adjustment pathways. This can lead to highly capable candidates choosing not to apply.

Review your organisation’s current processes to identify and remove access barriers. Ensure position descriptions focus only on the essential requirements of the role, use plain and inclusive language, and invite applicants to request reasonable adjustments. Highlight your workplace accessibility features and commitment to inclusion within the job advertisement.

Develop an inclusive interview process

Interviews are an opportunity to assess candidates on their capability and potential, not assumptions or stereotypes. Inclusive interviews focus on what a person can do with the right support in place. This may involve offering extra time, alternative communication formats, or physical access adjustments.

It’s also essential to train hiring panels in disability awareness, including what can and cannot be asked during an interview. Questions should relate directly to the role’s requirements and allow candidates to demonstrate how they can meet them, including with reasonable adjustments. Doing this builds trust, improves candidate experience, and ensures a fair and consistent assessment process.

Inclusive Onboarding

An inclusive onboarding process ensures that new employees with physical disability feel welcomed, respected, and set up for success from day one. This means having accessible materials, technology, and environments ready before they start, and engaging in early conversations about workplace adjustments.

Employers should introduce new hires to employee networks or support contacts, clarify how to request further accommodations, and check in regularly during the first few months. These simple but meaningful steps help reduce anxiety, boost engagement, and support long-term retention.

Help your organisation retain more people with disability

Build a psychologically safe culture

Psychological safety allows people to bring their whole selves to work without fear of being judged, marginalised, or penalised. For people with disability, it also means being able to safely disclose their disability or support needs and trust that these will be met with respect and action, not bias.

Leaders play a key role in creating this culture by actively listening, modelling inclusive behaviour, and encouraging openness. Building psychological safety enables employees to thrive, raise concerns early, and contribute more fully to team success.

Implement inclusive initiatives

Inclusion is not a one-time action, it’s a continuous commitment embedded in how an organisation operates. Inclusive initiatives should be reflected in policies, systems, leadership behaviours, and workplace culture. This includes ensuring that accessibility is considered in every step of the employee experience, from training and communication to performance management and progression.

Seek input from employees with disability and apply a co-design approach where possible. Their lived experience provides valuable insight into what’s working and what needs improvement. Regular review and feedback help your initiatives stay relevant, effective, and genuinely inclusive.

Embrace flexibility

Flexible work options, such as varied hours, job sharing, hybrid arrangements, or part-time roles are essential for many people with physical disability. These options allow individuals to manage health conditions, transport challenges, or support needs while maintaining meaningful and productive work.

Importantly, flexibility should be offered proactively, not just upon request. To be effective, flexibility needs to be backed by clear policies and consistent practice. Employees should be made aware of these options from the outset and feel empowered to request flexibility without fear of stigma or disadvantage.

Inclusive organisations create clear, supported pathways for employees with disability to grow, lead, and thrive. Yet, too often, people with disability are overlooked for development opportunities, not because of a lack of potential, but due to unconscious bias or inaccessible systems.

Advancing employees with physical disability means ensuring equitable access to leadership programs, mentoring, and career progression plans. Provide opportunities for additional responsibilities, visibility, and training that accommodate different needs. When inclusive advancement becomes the norm, your organisation not only empowers individuals, it also builds a stronger and more representative leadership pipeline.

Build equitable pathways to meaningful careers

Equity in career development means that all employees, including those with physical disability, have fair access to opportunities for growth and advancement. This includes being considered for leadership roles, and expanded responsibilities, not being overlooked due to inaccurate assumptions about capability or availability.

Provide accessible training and development programs, mentoring opportunities, and clear progression pathways. Supporting career growth sends a strong message that all employees are valued and have a future in your organisation, which in turn enhances retention and engagement.

Challenge assumptions

People with disability are often subject to conscious and unconscious bias—especially in high-pressure or leadership roles. Challenging assumptions is critical to ensuring equitable assessment and inclusion. This means focusing on skills, outcomes, and potential, rather than outdated ideas of what someone with a disability “can’t” do.

Encourage hiring managers and team leaders to reflect on their biases and decision-making frameworks. Provide support and training to improve awareness and inclusive behaviour. Over time, this helps shift the organisational mindset from accommodation to empowerment.

Support visible role models and champions

When people with disability see themselves represented in leadership, it challenges stereotypes and creates a powerful sense of belonging. Visibility matters, not only to employees with disability, but to the wider workforce who benefit from seeing inclusion in action.

Encourage leaders with disability to share their stories and participate in mentoring or leadership programs. You can also appoint disability inclusion champions who advocate across departments. These champions can help build confidence, offer peer support, and drive systemic change throughout your organisation.