Journal of Ergonomics
Open Access

Occupational Possibilities for People with Disabilities

Vasanthi Suresh^{* *}Correspondence: Vasanthi Suresh, Department of Management Studies, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Madras, India, Email:

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Description

It is widely recognized that individuals with disabilities face several challenges when trying to secure and sustain employment. Employers' views on the abilities of Persons with Disabilities (PwD) in relation to work is a significant contributor to the unemployment and underemployment challenges encountered by PwD. Research, however, shows that effective interventions can help create more equitable and inclusive workplaces at any point in the employment cycle. The idea of job matching as an inclusive intervention for individuals with disability is the focus of this short commentary.

Job matching for individuals with disabilities necessitates that the demands and characteristics of the workplace (e.g., tasks, physical work environment) and an individual's capabilities (e.g., skills, abilities), interests, and values as well as health-condition-specific requirements (e.g., accessible work environment) are compatible. Standardized (rather than inclusively designed) jobs may predominate in an environment where ableism is the norm, resulting often in an incompatibility between an individual's abilities and the job requirements.

However, the answer to the question “Does compatibility exist?” is not always binary; a spectrum of opportunities that fall under: “Possible, can be made compatible”, resides between "Yes, compatible" and "No, not compatible."

Argue in their paper titled that the intentional and voluntary endeavours of employers have a substantial impact upon job matching towards productive deployment of people with disabilities. The article centre on the existence of a potential "gap" a discrepancy between the current skills and abilities of a person with a disability and the job requirements for which they are being evaluated due to functional limitations associated with the type of disability. Nevertheless, the majority of these gaps can be "bridged" via meticulously designed interventions that include assistive devices, adaptations, and accommodations, encompassing various aspects of work such as process, time, schedule, tasks, resources, location, and equipment. The disability inclusive interventions would be characterized by interdependent interactions that span various aspects of the organisational environment. For example, the effects of accessibility related policies and infrastructure at the organisational level would trickle down to teams, facilitating the remediation of disconnects or gaps at an individual level. Capacity building initiatives, job restructuring, job crafting, and idiosyncratic deals all contribute to the effective bridging of gaps in job matching. Studies in this area may yield results that can serve as a basis for establishing standardized protocols for recruiting and assigning individuals with disabilities to appropriate employment opportunities. For instance, employers may find guidance in the International Labour Organization's (ILO) job and work analysis guidelines, which serves as a framework for practitioners, for identifying positions for PwD.

Historically, consistent with the medical model of disability, there was a prevailing belief that the physical or mental impairments experienced by individuals with disabilities inevitably led to their unemployment or underemployment. Nevertheless, it is currently acknowledged that the numerous challenges they encounter are not attributable to personal shortcomings, but rather to actual and perceived societal barriers. Presently, disability issues are being recognized more and more as human rights concerns.

The United Nation’s 2030 agenda for sustainable development advocates for audacious and paradigm-shifting measures to mitigate inequality, with the ultimate goal of building sustainable and inclusive societies on an international scale. In accordance with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 10-to encourage full and productive employment for all individuals; and SDG 8-to reduce inequality, it is necessary for nations and organizations to acknowledge that inclusively designed policies and interventions must be implemented to safeguard and advance the rights and dignity of individuals with disabilities. In an era where there is a strong emphasis on inclusive development as the feasible approach towards achieving sustainable development, it is crucial to have targeted efforts that prioritize the well-being of persons with disabilities.