The workplace should be a safe, fair and considerate place for employees of all abilities and backgrounds. However, disability discrimination can unfortunately still occur.
Disability discrimination can negatively impact employees, leading to a sense of exclusion from the workplace community.
How are employees with disabilities discriminated against?
Employees with disability may be discriminated against in various ways, including:
- Segregation and isolation: Employees with disabilities may be segregated from their coworkers or isolated from company activities, either physically or socially, leading to feelings of marginalization and exclusion.
- Failure to provide reasonable accommodations: Employers may refuse to provide necessary accommodations that would enable employees with disabilities to execute their job duties effectively such as wheelchair ramps, screen readers for visually impaired individuals or flexible work schedules for those with chronic health conditions.
- Inaccessibility of facilities and technologies: Workplace facilities, tools and technologies may not be accessible to employees with disabilities, creating barriers to their full participation in work-related tasks and activities.
- Unequal treatment and opportunities: Employers may treat employees with disabilities differently than their non-disabled counterparts, denying them opportunities for advancement, training or participation in company events and activities.
- Prejudice and stereotyping: Employees with disabilities may face prejudice and stereotyping based on misconceptions about their abilities, leading to assumptions about their competence, reliability or suitability for certain tasks or roles.
- Health and safety risks: Employers may overlook or disregard the health and safety needs of employees with disabilities, putting them at greater risk of injury or harm in the workplace. For example, failing to provide accessible emergency evacuation procedures for employees with mobility impairments.
- Implicit bias and microaggressions: Employees with disabilities may experience subtle forms of discrimination through microaggressions or unconscious biases from coworkers or supervisors, such as patronizing language, disbelief about their abilities or assumptions about their needs and preferences.
If you are facing discrimination at the workplace, you may consider pursuing legal recourse to protect your rights and secure justice for the harm you have experienced.
