Spotlight: Inclusive Hiring
Explore a variety of tools, resources, and practical tips to help employers put inclusive hiring practices into action.
Inclusive hiring means people with disabilities have equitable access at every stage of the hiring process. Inclusive hiring processes benefit both disabled employees and employers because they foster a welcoming work environment by design, leading to long-term success. Prioritizing disability inclusion also offers employers access to a wider range of talent, improves employee morale, and boosts productivity. EARN offers a variety of tools, resources, and practical tips to help employers put inclusive hiring practices into action.
Frequently Asked Questions
"Inclusive hiring" occurs when employers provide candidates with disabilities equitable access throughout each stage of the hiring process. To implement inclusive hiring, employers design job descriptions, applications, interviews, and onboarding procedures to be inclusive and accessible for people with disabilities from the start.
- Learn more about planning for inclusive hiring.
There are many ways to create a welcoming workplace environment for new hires with disabilities. Start by educating and training current employees on how to respectfully communicate about and interact with people with disabilities in the workplace.
- Find tips and guidelines to ensure people with disabilities feel welcome and included in the workplace.
EARN provides a range of resources, trainings, and policy implementation tools to help implement disability-inclusive practices, including specialized trainings for managers. Clear communication is essential to reinforce your commitment to inclusion, as is regularly updating related policies.
- Find information to help managers make a difference and access trainings to support disability inclusion in the workplace.
- Explore strategies to express a commitment to disability inclusion.
Ensuring that job descriptions, applications, and interview processes are inclusive and accessible promotes fairness in hiring and demonstrates your commitment to inclusion. These practices also help to attract a broader and more diverse talent pool. EARN has resources to help employers ensure that different parts of the hiring process are inclusive and accessible.
- Learn about the components of inclusive job descriptions and the role they play in the employment of people with disabilities.
- Use this tool to review your organization’s job descriptions and announcements for accessibility.
- Ensure your organization’s interview processes are inclusive of candidates with disabilities.
- Take this short online training to ensure interviews are accessible and inclusive.
Applicants are under no legal obligation to disclose their disability, but it can be beneficial for them to do so for a variety of reasons. If a candidate discloses a disability, it may be because they want to request a reasonable accommodation to help them succeed and feel comfortable at work, which initiates an interactive process. Employers can respond appropriately by understanding the candidate’s needs and providing accommodations in line with company policies and legal requirements.
- Learn about disability disclosure in the workplace and the role employers play.
Accommodations are defined as any change or adjustment to a job, the work environment, or the way things are usually done that would allow a person with a disability to apply for a job, perform essential job functions, or enjoy equal access to benefits available to employees without disabilities. If applicable, federal laws require employers to provide reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities.
- Find information about the role accommodations play in creating inclusive workplaces and steps to take when someone requests an accommodation.
Accessible onboarding processes are key to fostering an inclusive workplace. Consider both technological and physical accessibility to ensure all new hires feel welcome.
- Ensure your organization’s onboarding processes are accessible to and inclusive of employees with disabilities.
EARN offers strategies, guidelines, tips, best practices, and more to help employers adopt accessible hiring practices and foster disability-inclusive workplaces.
- Explore EARN’s resources on accessible hiring practices.
EARN’s case studies highlight how many organizations have successfully implemented disability-inclusive hiring practices.
- Learn about different ways organizations implement inclusive hiring processes and meet their organization’s diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) goals.
A number of federal civil rights laws and regulations impact the hiring of people with disabilities. EARN has information to help employers understand these laws and their requirements as they relate to the hiring process.
- Learn about the federal laws and regulations that impact the hiring process.
There are many inclusive hiring strategies that relate to specific sectors, such as the Federal Government and state agencies.
- Explore special considerations for hiring people with disabilities in specific sectors and industries, including the public sector.
- Learn how state governments can become a model employer of people with disabilities.
- Learn about the Schedule A hiring authority, an alternative employment pathway for disabled candidates interested in applying for jobs with the Federal Government.
- Find answers to frequently asked questions about the Schedule A hiring authority.
- Learn how to find and hire college students and recent graduates with disabilities using the Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP).
Many federal contractors and subcontractors must take proactive steps to include people with disabilities in their workforce. EARN has information on these obligations.
- Learn about federal contractors’ obligations under Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act and explore strategies for meeting them.