World of HR: Half of employers in Canada don’t consistently promote or provide disability accommodations

Employers in Canada may want to review their disability accommodations policies, or see if they have any, according to a new white paper from the Canadian Council on Rehabilitation and Work (CCRW).

Where in the world? The report is part of CCRW’s Disability Confident Employers campaign, which aims to have 50 employers in Canada pledge to improve workplace accessibility and create better experiences for job applicants and employees.

Roughly half (49%) of business leaders surveyed by CCRW said that disability adjustments are not “actively promoted or consistently provided” to those with disabilities. Since 1977, the Canadian Human Rights Act has mandated that employers provide workers with accommodations, as long as they don’t cause “undue hardship” to the company.

Furthermore, 64% of respondents said their workplace doesn’t have a formal process for removing accessibility barriers; 70% have not reviewed accessibility in the context of the employment lifecycle, while another 70% have not received disability-related leadership training.

Just 62% of disabled people in Canada are working, compared to 78% of non-disabled residents, and they often have lower paying jobs with fewer career opportunities, according to the Canadian government’s 2022 Survey on Disability.

Nearly 7 in 10 disabled candidates said they’ve encountered an accessibility barrier in the hiring process, including unmet accommodation requests or a lack of clarity around how to request an accommodation.

“Disability confidence is not built through one-off actions. It is built through consistent systems and leader behaviours that make accessibility real in everyday work,” Maureen Haan, president and CEO of CCRW, said in a statement. “With employers across Canada facing ongoing talent shortages, accessibility must be a priority now. By strengthening disability confidence, businesses can attract and retain skilled talent.”

Satellite view. In the US, 60% of disabled workers have requested accommodations at work; 26.8% of those requests have been denied, according to a report from Disability Solutions.

“Employers need to build intentional, accessible, and clear career pathways for disabled employees,” Keely Cat-Wells, founder and CEO of Making Space, a disability-focused talent acquisition platform, told HR Brew previously. “There is a significant shortage of visible disabled role models in senior leadership positions across many sectors and this lack of representation affects the aspirations of disabled people and perpetuates a cycle where leadership paths seem inaccessible to those who are disabled.”