Why Are We Still Not Hiring Individuals with Disabilities?

Recently, I came across a comprehensive study addressing a question frequently asked in the business world, but often without a clear answer: “Why Do Employers Fail to Hire People with Disabilities?” (A Systematic Review, Springer, 2022)

The research examines dozens of scientific studies worldwide and reaches a critical conclusion: the barriers to hiring people with disabilities are not personal—they are systemic. These barriers fall into three main categories: Capability, Opportunity, and Motivation.

Today, I want to discuss these realities that the business world must now confront, through these three lenses.

1. Capability – Lack of Knowledge and Competence

According to the study, a significant portion of employers lack accurate knowledge and experience regarding people with disabilities. The most frequently cited barriers include:

• Lack of understanding of different types of disabilities

• Lack of managerial skills in job accommodation and adaptation

In other words, it’s not about “people with disabilities can’t do the job”; in many cases, the employer simply doesn’t know what is possible. Yet today, accessible work tools, reasonable accommodations, and task design solutions are readily available.

2. Opportunity – Environmental and Systemic Barriers

One of the most striking findings of the study is that the greatest barrier to hiring people with disabilities is physical and systemic. Many organizations still exclude candidates at the outset due to:

• Inaccessible buildings, entrances without ramps, floors without elevators

• Narrow doors, inaccessible restrooms

• Digital systems incompatible with screen readers

Sometimes employers step back, saying “we’re not ready,” but being unprepared is not an excuse—it’s a starting point for change. The issue is not the capability of the individual, but the environment’s ability to enable them.

3. Motivation – Beliefs, Attitudes, and Biases

Finally, the most striking finding: the strongest barrier to hiring people with disabilities is prejudice and misconceptions. Common concerns include:

• Doubts about the performance of employees with disabilities

• Expectation that hiring a person with a disability will be costly

• Lack of strong motivation beyond “doing a good deed”

Disability is still perceived as a matter of charity. Yet people with disabilities are talents. Hiring should therefore be seen as a matter of talent management, not just social responsibility.

What Can We Do?

For me, this is not an academic finding—it is real life. As someone who has lived in a wheelchair for 27 years, I know that disability is not an individual limitation; it is a system problem.

Therefore, the solution should come from the system, not individuals.

To transform the system, we should:

• Approach hiring people with disabilities through the lens of justice, not charity

• Replace fears and biases with knowledge and experience

• Move the hiring of people with disabilities from a “social responsibility project” to the center of HR strategy

Not Playing Games

There are two common mistakes often made when communicating with people with disabilities.

The first is “patronizing”—sometimes described as “talking down.” The second is “pitying.”

I have yet to encounter anyone who makes these mistakes with ill intent. However, I would like to ask: just as many of our automatic behaviors unintentionally hurt those around us, could these also be inadvertently hurtful to some? Beyond causing harm, could these attitudes reinforce societal biases or even pave the way for new ones?

Sometimes these two mistakes are very obvious, and other times it takes an external, neutral perspective and reflection to notice them. What is truly dangerous is when these mistakes become normalized over time.

For example, the phrase “our brothers and sisters with disabilities” contains both patronizing and pitying undertones. While rare, do not be misled—this kind of language can appear frequently in various contexts. I have witnessed its repeated use firsthand.

Between August 28 and September 8, I eagerly followed a major event: the Paralympic Games.

Whenever I could, I watched the games and felt immense pride in our athletes’ determination and achievements. At the same time, I was equally disheartened to hear commentators repeatedly use the word “brother” when referring to athletes with disabilities. I do not doubt their genuine intentions, nor am I in a position to criticize their knowledge of the games or rules.

So what changed? Why does a commentator refer to an “Iranian competitor” at the Olympics, but switch to “Iranian brother” at the Paralympics? These athletes prepare for their competitions with just as much dedication, relentless effort, and sacrifice as Olympic athletes, putting everything on the line for a medal.

To reassure you, if it helps… this issue is not unique to us. Around the world, there is a language confusion deeply rooted in biases against disability. The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) even confirmed this on its official account, which inspired me to write this piece. On a red background, the message read with the hashtag #NotPlayingGames:"Paralympians have often been described by media as participants and not competitors. At Paris 2024, it's time we set the record straight."

It is clear that we must make much more effort to change the way we communicate with people with disabilities. I have assigned myself the task of periodically writing about disability communication, starting with this post.

If effective communication is about clarity, emotional connection, and delivering an original message that resonates with the audience…

Then yes, the Paralympic Games have concluded, and what remains in my mind is the determination, ambition, and tireless spirit of all our athletes, the extraordinary success of our athletes who won a total of 28 medals—including six gold—and the term “brothers and sisters.”

December 3rd

Today is December 3rd,

the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

For years, I resisted participating in what I considered performative celebrations that ignored the real needs of people with disabilities, often saying, “December 3rd should not be celebrated.” This year, however, I have decided to change that stance.

[If you think differently or have additions, please join the conversation in the comments :)]

Just as we celebrate women on March 8th and LGBT+ individuals in June—recognizing their existence, rights-based struggles, and the beauty of being together in society—I believe we should also celebrate the existence of people with disabilities, whether their differences are visible or invisible.

But what exactly should we celebrate?

• Let us celebrate people with disabilities who, as a dear friend once said, “consider survival itself my greatest achievement”, managing to live despite all barriers.

• Let us celebrate the families who never leave them alone.

• Let us celebrate businesses and individual initiatives that strive to solve accessibility problems the public sector fails to address.

• Let us celebrate educators who work selflessly for the development of students with disabilities in special education schools and inclusive classrooms.

• Let us celebrate companies that do not hire to merely meet quotas, but recognize people with disabilities as talent.

• Let us celebrate coaches who train athletes with disabilities, whose medals fill us with pride.

• Let us celebrate all those who advocate for equal rights for people with disabilities.

Let us celebrate the good, and encourage those who want to do good, so that no one has to roll their wheelchair out of their home and leave it by a parking spot with a sign reading “Accessible parking for disabled vehicles, thank you”—like in the photo below.

Photo: A wheelchair left by the roadside with a cardboard sign saying, “Accessible parking for disabled vehicles, thank you.”