Workplace Flexibility: A Strategy for Increasing Disability Inclusion
There is no denying that the COVID-19 pandemic produced significant shifts in America’s employment landscape. Central to these shifts is increased workplace flexibility—and today, more and more businesses are embracing flexibility as a talent acquisition and retention strategy.
That’s because offering greater choice regarding how, when and where to work can significantly expand a business’s talent pool by eliminating geographical barriers. Workplace flexibility benefits people with and without disabilities. But flexible work arrangements can particularly help employers attract and retain people with disabilities. Disabled candidates may need or prefer to telework some or part of the time. Employees who acquire a disability due to injury, illness or aging may also need flexibility to remain at work. In this way, it is also an effective strategy for increasing workplace equity and inclusion.
The ODEP-funded Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) offers guidance on how workplace flexibility can help businesses of all sizes foster more inclusive, accessible and equitable organizational cultures. For instance, its centralized Workplace Flexibility webpage addresses different forms of workplace flexibility, its benefits to both employers and workers, and considerations related to accommodations, scheduling, technology, performance management and other workplace policies. For employers wishing to dive deeper into specific topics, this webpage also includes links to issue briefs on workplace flexibility’s intersection with family caregiving and employee transportation, as well as how to ensure it is implemented equitably.
In the end, workplace flexibility is about meeting the needs of both workers and employers. While the pandemic may have accelerated its adoption, many businesses are now consciously embracing it—and reaping the benefits of a more productive and inclusive workforce as a result.