Resources for Employers

Companies including JP Morgan Chase, Coca-Cola, UPS, EY, IBM, Walgreens, Starbucks, and SAP are case studies that show people with disabilities can succeed. Accenture completed a major study that shows that such companies have seen “28 percent higher revenue, double the net income, and 30 percent higher economic profit margins” over a four-year period.

That’s because people with disabilities bring unique characteristics and talents to the workplace that benefit employers and organizations. If we find the right jobs for the right people, it can and will increase the bottom line of companies.

Given the unprecedented situation created by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis, new ideas, new efforts and new leadership are need to remake the economy and make it more inclusive for all. Our community has been hit hard by the pandemic and needs to be at the forefront of any recovery efforts.

Learn more about how hiring workers with disabilities could help you achieve greater success by reviewing the resources below.

Business Focused Disability Organizations:

General Resources for Employers

The Workplace Initiative – The Workplace Initiative helps companies recruit, hire and retain the largest untapped labor pool in the country – people with disabilities. This site showcases facts and case studies to show how disability inclusion drives business value. The Disability Employment and Inclusion Guide includes information needed to start or enhance your disability employment and inclusion program.
Disability Equality Index (DEI) – The DEI is a national, transparent, annual benchmarking tool that offers businesses an opportunity to receive an objective score, on a scale of zero (0) to 100, on their disability inclusion policies and practices.
Disability Employment Tracker – The Disability Employment Tracker™ is a free, confidential company assessment that measures disability and employment policies and practices and includes a confidential section on veteran employment practice.
The Job Accommodation Network (AskJAN.org) – Working toward practical solutions that benefit both employer and employee, JAN helps people with disabilities enhance their employability, and shows employers how to capitalize on the value and talent that people with disabilities add to the workplace.
Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (AskEARN.org) – EARN is a free resource that helps employers tap the benefits of disability diversity. They educate public- and private-sector organizations on ways to build inclusive workplace cultures and empower them to become leaders in the employment and advancement of people with disabilities.
- Neurodiversity in the Workplace toolkit – Learn more about creating a workplace culture that is inclusive and supportive of neurodivergent workers, including information about accommodations, business benefits, performance management and mentorship.
Getting Hired – An Allegis Group Company, GettingHired is a recruitment solution dedicated to helping inclusive employers hire professional individuals and veterans with disabilities.
abilityJOBS.com – Established in 1995, AbilityJobs is the first online job board dedicated to connecting job seekers with employers—helping hundreds of thousands of qualified candidates with disabilities.
ABILITYJobFair.org – Ability Job Fair is the only online career fair with face-to-face video—including real time captioning, chat and sign language interpreters, providing the most accessible experience for job seekers with disabilities.
Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) – The Workforce Recruitment Program is a recruitment and referral program that connects federal and private-sector employers nationwide with highly motivated college students and recent graduates with disabilities who are eager to demonstrate their abilities in the workplace through summer or permanent jobs.
LEAD CENTER – The LEAD Center is a collaborative of disability workforce and economic empowerment organizations dedicated to improving employment and economic advancement outcomes for all people with disabilities.
RETAIN Demonstration Projects – The Retaining Employment and Talent after Injury/Illness Network (RETAIN) is a program focused on an important dimension of disability employment: Stay-at-Work/Return-to-Work (SAW/RTW) Funded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) in partnership with the Employment and Training Administration and Social Security Administration, the program is engaging eight state teams in a series of demonstration projects focused on helping workers stay at or return to the workforce following an illness or injury.
U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) – created in 1953, the SBA is the only cabinet level federal agency fully dedicated to helping small business owners and entrepreneurs pursue the American dream. SBA has good resources on how to hire individual with disabilities starting from how to create a culture of inclusivity and including financial incentives.
Hire Disability Solutions – Hire Disability Solutions was founded in response to the increasing demand for services for individual with disabilities.
Workforce Solutions – The Workforce Solutions toolkit is developed using the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy as a source. This toolkit highlights additional employer benefits associated with hiring persons with disabilities.
Council For Disability Awareness (CDA) – a national nonprofit organization dedicated to helping adults understand the importance of having alternative sources of income for times when they can not work, has resources to showcase how businesses benefit from hiring people with disabilities.
The Campaign for Disability Employment (CDE) – Funded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy, the CDE is a collaborative effort among several disability and business organizations that is working to change attitudes about disability and employment.

Employee Resource Groups

Webinar: Disability Awareness: How to Plan Accessible ERG Events
- Read transcript
- Download PowerPoint
ERG Leadership Alliance: “As the ERG of ERGs, we are the largest global community of DEI professionals, ERG oversight managers, individual group leaders, executive sponsors & allies.”
PurpleSpace: “The world’s only professional development hub for disability network leaders”
Chezie ERG Leaders Community: “A central resource for you to share best practices, network with other ERG leaders, and collaborate on events and initiatives”

#RespectTheAbility Campaign Celebrates Model Employers that Demonstrate Inclusive Hiring on all Levels:

Press Clips on the Benefits of Hiring People with Disabilities

Hiring Americans with Disabilities, CNBC – Discussing what hiring people with disabilities means for an organization, with Rodger DeRose, Kessler Foundation CEO, and Gregory Wasson, Walgreen CEO. “People with disabilities want to work, and can absolutely be qualified to work,” explains Wasson.
What People Don’t Understand About Hiring Someone with A Physical Disability, Fast Company – Hiring someone with a physical disability isn’t an act of charity; it’s a decision that will bring a valuable perspective to your business. Here’s why and how you should welcome your newest hire.
Giant Eagle Makes Case for Hiring People with Disabilities, Progressive Grocer – Grocer shares insights at National Disability Institute event.
Making the Business Case for Hiring People with Disabilities, EconoTimes – National Disability Institute (NDI), in partnership with Kessler Foundation and Poses Family Foundation, assembled corporate leaders and community providers at the Duquesne Club in Pittsburgh for the event: Disability at Work, a Conversation with Randy Lewis. Lewis, a former Senior Vice President at Walgreens, shared evidence of “return on investment” when disability becomes a centerpiece of a corporation’s diversity and inclusion strategy to enhance workforce productivity and the bottom line.
Viewpoint: How Hiring People with Disabilities Works for Businesses, Too, Society for Human Resource Management – Person-centered career planning makes the process of finding and retaining a job easier, but there are still many willing and capable people left out of the workforce. Job placement and training services are looking for new strategies to get people with disabilities employed.
What companies gain by including persons with disabilities, World Economic Forum – Research shows that more inclusive companies are twice as likely to have higher total shareholder returns than their peers, on average. Additionally, companies that have become more inclusive over time are four times more likely to have total shareholder returns that outperform those of their peer group. When it comes to profitability and value creation, these companies achieved 28% higher revenue, double the net income and 30% higher economic profit margins over the four-year period analyzed, on average.

Do you know other people or nonprofit organizations that should be included as a resource?

Contact our Senior Communications Associate, Eric Ascher, at EricA@RespectAbility.org.