How and Why to Make Sure Disability is Part of the DEI Conversation in Your Business
Updated January 17, 2024
Filed under Disability Awareness & Confidence, Inclusive Hiring
Reading time: 5 min | Posted by Dean Askin and Jeannette Campbell | Part two in a two-part series

There’s an irony about disability inclusion, and how it’s changing the nature of businesses and work now, as well as driving more evolution of both in the future.
As part one explored, disability is driving the future of work more than ever. But here’s the aforementioned irony: disability is still too often left out of the business conversation about diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
Most DEI conversations tend to focus on gender and/or ethnicity. Disability is either left out altogether; or mentioned merely in passing as part of “other under-represented groups.”
Disability dialogue is essential
It’s essential to make sure disability is included in this dialogue — because disability inclusion is driving the future success of businesses; and driving change in the nature of work.
The Presidents Group initiative in British Columbia, notes that “naming disability alongside other priority areas” of DEI “is a key practice at leading inclusive organizations.”
The COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t “dampened intention, commitment or enthusiasm” about disability inclusion efforts and actions, according to The Valuable Truth 2022 report by The Valuable 500.
But here’s the thing: this doesn’t necessarily mean disability is being made an integral, regular part of the DEI business conversation.
Other research by The Valuable 500 — the world’s largest CEO collective and business movement for disability inclusion — found this: 90% of global companies say they’re committed to diversity. But only 4% have a disability focus on diversity.
Commitment or consequences
You can’t just state your commitment to DEI — including disability inclusion — on your website or in a job posting. You’ve got to show your commitment through action.
But this action probably won’t happen if you’re not making disability part of your DEI dialogue. And this means you’re not going to be able to create a truly inclusive culture in your business. There are major consequences of this:
- You’ll miss the opportunity to be an employer of choice in your community. Creating a culture in which disability inclusion is a driving force for growth and success isn’t just about the bottom line — other things are important, too.
There’s a general acknowledgement that there’s been a dramatic shift in talent recruitment. Now, job seekers are in the driver’s seat. They’re more discerning about employment and career opportunities they’ll apply for and accept. The kinds of businesses their personal values are aligned with. And whether those companies have inclusive cultures.
A 2020 survey found that 70% of job seekers want to work for a company that demonstrates its commitment to DEI, making that business an employer of choice.
Can you afford not to be an employer of choice when there’s a labour shortage?
- You’re likely going to miss out on the market opportunities. The disability consumer market is huge. It touches 53% of the world’s population (1.8 billion people who have a disability plus their family and friends). This demographic controls almost US$13 trillion in disposable income.
Not only is the disability market a vast one to be tapped into globally, it’s growing in Canada. Consumer spending by Canadians who have a disability is expected to rise to 21% from 14% of the total consumer market by 2030.
A sizeable chunk of this market is eCommerce. In number-10 spot, Canada’s is one of the biggest ecommerce markets in the world.
If you’re not talking about disability as an inherent part of DEI — and hence not taking proactive action on it, you’re alienating consumers who have a disability, in the burgeoning eCommerce market.
Retailers in the U.K. are learning this the hard way. They’re losing 17 million pounds (C$26.5 million) a year because they aren’t meeting the online shopping needs of customers who have a disability. These customers are clicking away from retailers’ inaccessible sites without making a purchase.
- Your bottom line and brand reputation won’t be as healthy as they could be. An Accenture study found, businesses focused on disability inclusion grow sales 2.9 times faster than other companies, and profits 4.1 times faster. This is a strong impetus to make disability part of the DEI conversation in your business.
On top of this bottom-line aspect, more people are expecting businesses to be disability inclusive. And they’re more likely to do business with you when you are.
Reasons why disability gets left out
There are plenty of business reasons why disability inclusion should be part of your DEI business conversations. So why aren’t more organizations — in Canada, anyway — making it so?
- Myths and misconceptions about disability still abound. The lack of knowledge about disability, along with most employers being uncertain of how they “should respond to disability…contribute to a culture of exclusion,” noted the February 2022 Public Policy Forum report, Employers’ Lessons Learned in Hiring, Retaining and Advancing Employees with Disabilities.
- Federal and provincial governments can’t legislate inclusion. It’s only recently that the major players in the Commonwealth of Nations — Canada, the U.K. and Australia, have established formal strategies for increasing disability inclusion in communities, employment and the economy.
Each nation’s strategy includes encouraging and educating companies to hire more people who have a disability. But private businesses are accountable to their shareholders, owners and investors, not the government.
Changing business perspectives and perceptions about hiring people who have a disability can happen only one way: through education.
Three ways to ensure dialogue happens
These are all some of the key why’s for making sure disability is part of the DEI conversations you’re having in your business. So what are some of the ways you can make sure it’s included?
- Make sure you have a strategic plan and make disability inclusion part of it. Disability-inclusive recruitment needs to be part of your overall strategic plan. When disability inclusion is written into your strategy, it will certainly be part of the DEI business conversation every time you’re talking about plans for the growth and success of your business.
As part of your strategic plan, develop a DEI framework that encourages all employees to contribute to it — whichever way they’re most comfortable with.
Actively seek out individuals within your company, and outside of your organization, who have lived experience with disability. Creating a truly inclusive culture and making sure all employees can succeed now and in the future, requires their perspective, suggestions and ideas.
- Build your knowledge — learn about the myths and misconceptions around disability. As noted earlier, these are a major contributing factor in reasons why disability often isn’t included in the business conversation about DEI. If you don’t have a lot of experience with disability, consult with outside DEI professionals who can help you raise your disability confidence level and take the first steps on the disability-inclusive hiring journey.
As well, build your knowledge by reading research studies and reports about disability inclusion in business. There are a lot of them.
- Make sure there’s commitment at the top. Disability inclusion must be driven from the top down. If there’s a lack of commitment from senior leadership (or company owner in the case of a small business), disability isn’t going to be part of the DEI business conversation. If you fill senior management roles with people who have a disability, there’s much more likelihood that it will be part of the DEI business conversation. This is happening more, according to the 2022 Disability Equality Index report.
The key takeaway
The most important thing in making sure disability is included in the DEI business conversation is this: Simply start the dialogue. Then foster it throughout your organization.
Once you do that, talking about disability will be easier and more comfortable for everyone you involve in the conversation. Making it part of the DEI dialogue in your business will become second nature. And ultimately, the proactive talk will lead to proactive DEI action on disability-inclusive hiring — which will lead to continued business success in the years ahead.
Here are some tips for making sure your business is disability inclusive so you can confidently and fully embrace the changes happening now and in the future.
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About the Authors
Dean Askin is the Communications Strategist for the Ontario Disability Employment Network.
Jeannette Campbell is CEO of the Ontario Disability Employment Network.