For 18 glorious days, the Olympics took over my life. Cycling, fencing, handball, gymnastics, I watched it all. Now that the Olympics are done I’m not exactly sure what to do with myself besides wait for the Paralympics, which start next week. If you were following the Olympics even half as closely as I was, you’ve probably heard about Oscar Pistorius, the double-amputee South African runner. Pistorius was allowed to compete against able-bodied runners in the Olympic Games for the first time this year, after running in the Paralympic Games since 2004.
I was inspired by Pistorius and his views on being disabled. He was raised by a mother who treated him the same as his able-bodied brother, and he personally believes that disabilities should not be seen as shortcomings. In fact, he is regularly quoted for saying, “being disabled doesn’t mean you have to be at a disadvantage.” Personally, I believe this is a view that should be carried over into the workplace.
Did you know that the unemployment rate for the disabled, at 15 percent in 2011, is almost double the unemployment rate for the general population?[1] Employers just aren’t looking to the disabled population to fill open positions, even though according to the U.S. Department of Education, disabled employees tend to rate at or above average in performance, quality and quantity of work, and flexibility. When you couple in the fact that disabled employees also tend to have lower absenteeism and lower turnover rates, it turns out that hiring disabled workers may actually prove advantageous over able-bodied employees.
Just as Pistorius needs special prosthetics for racing, some disabled employees just need simple accommodations to be productive in the workplace. For example, a visually-impaired employee may need better lighting or magnification in order to complete job tasks. Organizations may see these accommodations as barriers to hiring disabled employees. However, according to the Job Accommodation Network, over half (56 percent) of necessary accommodations cost nothing to implement. For the rest of accommodations, the average price tag is just $600. In exchange, employees who receive these accommodations tend to be more loyal to the organization, and 72 percent of employers report an increase in employees’ productivity who received workplace accommodations.[2]
The bottom line is that disabilities should not be seen as a disadvantage in the workplace, and disabled employees can even offer distinct advantages to employers. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to start gathering supplies for the Paralympic Games. I’m going to be spending quite a bit of time on the couch cheering on Pistorius and the other athletes.
[1] Persons with a Disability: Labor Force Characteristics Summary, Bureau of Labor Statistics, June 6, 2011, http://www.bls.gov/news.release/disabl.nr0.htm (accessed August 15, 2011).
[2] Phone interview with Anne E. Hirsh, MS, and Lou Orslene, 4/29/11.
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