In your company today, there may be a few empty desks you wish were filled with qualified and motivated employees. This is a common scenario in many workplaces in Australia.
What many of us are not aware of is that employees with disability offer a substantial opportunity for your business. With the programs of disability employment services nowadays, job seekers with disability are more equipped than before. Also, these programs assist not only the job seekers but also organizations that employ people with disability as well.
Ensuring that your office can welcome employees with disabilities is not just ethical, but it also makes great business deals. Here are the reasons why:
1. Build Business Reputation
Studies reveal that customers and employees are more loyal to brands and organizations that value diversity. Showing that your workforce is composed of diverse talents, ethnicities, and cultures conveys a positive message to the public.
2. Improve Customer Retention
Other than the previous point, having employees with disability in your workforce can help you understand the needs of your clients or customers with disabilities, which gives you an edge over your competitors. Moreover, a team that mirrors the community’s diversity is likely to impress customers, resulting in greater client loyalty.
3. Retain Talent
When companies work with disability employment services and welcome job seekers with disability, they can ensure that they will hire the right employee with relevant skills and qualifications for the job. Also, you create a positive impression on your existing employees. Since diversity attracts talents and gains confidence among people, you are more likely to motivate and encourage your workforce.
4. Reduce Risk
It has been seen that employees with disability have lower absenteeism and employee turnover. They are also less prone to workplace injury incidence since most of them are extra careful due to their current condition. Establishments who employ people with disability also have a lesser risk for complaints or breaking the discrimination law.
5. Smart on Resources
A study by Accenture shows that organizations that actively seek to hire people with disabilities perform better than those who do not. The former profits 28% more compared to the latter. Moreover, the study also reflects that companies who embraced disability have shown a significant increase in employee retention. Definitely, an advantage if you want to save time, money and effort on frequently hiring new people because of high employee turnover.
6. Diversify Workplace Culture
The value that disabled workers can bring to the company goes beyond the numbers. With their unique life experiences and perspectives, they can help create diverse company cultures. Those people with disabilities look at business problems differently and bring remarkable innovations in the form of product or customer service.
Moving Forward to a Diverse Workforce
For a business to be successful in diversifying their workforce, they need to view it as embracing the benefits of employing a group of people with varying talents, experiences and capabilities, rather than just mere compliance.
To diversify your business, start from the core and work your way out. Make sure to tweak company policies to make it more disability-friendly. From the employee handbook, office practices and procedures, take into consideration the “new standards.”
People with disability can bring diversity, motivation and success to the group, but they are still fighting against the discrimination. Fortunately, more and more organizations today see the benefits they can bring to the company, although there is still a lot of work to be done.
