Disability and the workplace in 2026: setbacks, stigma, and AI

Disability employment in the US hit an all-time high in the fall of 2025 following decades of gains thanks, in part, to the Americans with Disabilities Act and remote work opportunities.

These advancements, however, could be threatened by AI, anti-DEI rhetoric, and strict in-office mandates resurfacing challenges for disabled workers, who told us they want employers to be more thoughtful about their own biases and how they hire new workers.

Remote work. Many disabled professionals told HR Brew that their biggest workplace hurdle is the lack of remote or flexible work.

“My biggest barrier to employment is organizational resistance to remote workers,” A’Biel Hammonds, a people and culture transformation professional, told us on LinkedIn.

Remote work was a common accommodation during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, but strict in-office mandates in recent years could have disproportionately impacted disabled professionals.

“I was turned away from every job I applied for, simply because I am not able to drive,” Anastasia Wycoff, who has a vision impairment, told us on LinkedIn. “Many recruiters and employers think that because someone is disabled, they automatically assume they can’t perform the duties of the job they applied for. Judging someone for something that is out of their control is discriminatory and completely unfair.”

Discrimination persists. Many disabled workers still experience microaggressions, bullying, and harassment, HR Brew reported previously. Many disabled professionals see and feel those attitudes, and are often afraid to disclose their disability.

“There’s a lot of stigma still,” Michele Lee, Disability Rights Advocate board member and quadriplegic who was laid off over the summer, told HR Brew. “I think that’s because people think so little of folks with disabilities.”

“Some professionals are afraid to disclose their disabilities because they worry that employers will question their competence, productivity, or ability to lead,” Thierry Cintra Marcondes, mechanical engineer who is deafblind, told us via email. “I have seen how these assumptions can limit professional opportunities, even for highly qualified people.”

AI minefields. Experts and professionals that spoke with HR Brew are also concerned about how employers use AI in hiring, saying that systems frequently automatically eliminate job seekers with employment gaps or unconventional experience.

“Automated screening and AI-driven pre-employment assessments such as automated coding evaluations, personality tests, and pre-recorded video platforms like HireVue—are huge hurdles,” Ajay Joe, a cybersecurity expert, told HR Brew in an email. 

The ACLU and legal experts have warned that systems that track facial expressions or tones can increase bias against neurodivergent talent. But it doesn’t stop in the hiring process. Technology can limit disabled employees once they’re on the job as well.

“Even once you get your foot in the door, either internal systems or third-party vendor systems can be inaccessible,” Christopher Nagle, an engineer, who added that sub-optimal assistive technology can impact worker productivity, told us on LinkedIn.

“I know that keystroke monitoring is another concern that some workers have,” Taryn Williams, senior fellow at the National Partnership for Women and Families and former assistant secretary of disability policy for the Department of Labor, told HR Brew. “Depending on the pace of their break, the pace of how they work, they may be qualified. They may be meeting their overall performance standards. But if they’re doing it in a way that doesn’t match the way that the AI has been programmed to to monitor them, then that puts them at risk.”

What employers should do. Disabled workers want employers to value them, and to make disability a “core component” of their culture, HR Brew reported previously. HR should also examine existing policies to determine if they’re creating an inclusive hiring process and workplace.

“Employers have an obligation to understand the ways in which their deployment of AI impacts all workers, but also disabled workers,” Williams said, adding that employers don’t always know enough about the technology platforms the company uses. “If we don’t know, then we may not be aware of the ways in which we are screening out folks. We may screen out folks because they’re using adaptive software.”

Employers could also create employee-centered work environments so their workforces feel safe disclosing a disability or asking for accommodations.

“Employers also need to understand that disability isn’t always visible,” Michael Wilhide, a neurodivergent professional that works in lab science, wrote on LinkedIn. “Before labeling an employee as a performance problem, ask whether the workplace has provided the clarity, training, communication, and support that person needs to succeed.

“It starts with bringing more awareness,” Lee concluded. “Look at your team. Do you know anybody on your team with a disability? If not, then you’ve got a problem.”