The Future of Disability Inclusion with Sarah Kirwan
A hand with a wrist watch and bracelet is typing on a piece of assistive technology in front of a computer keyboard
By Sarah Kirwan and Ryan Letts, Facilitator and Consultant
Although awareness around autism, ADHD, and other disabilities is on the rise because of an increase in education (and myriad other factors), we’ve noticed that disability inclusion is still a huge learning and growth curve for many companies. Ableist comments and microaggressions are still quite commonplace in today’s workplaces. As someone with a history of working with the Deaf community, this is an area of particular interest for me.
I had the pleasure of connecting with Sarah Kirwan, a fantastic disability inclusion consultant and the founder and CEO of Eye Level Communications, LLC. Sarah is doing the much-needed work of upgrading companies’ understanding of disability inclusion.
As part of ReadySet's journey to center accessibility and universal design, we sat down with Sarah Kirwan.
How can employers better support their employees with disabilities in 2024?
Sarah: Flexibility is critical to creating and sustaining programs that successfully support employees with disabilities. After decades of disability rights activists fighting for telehealth and telework, the pandemic finally forced medical providers and employers to be more flexible. That’s one of the main reasons the disability employment rate is the highest it's been since they started collecting data on it. This is particularly important because we’re continuing to see businesses implement broad return-to-office initiatives that are inflexible and inequitable, forcing many people with disabilities to exit the workforce.
It’s important to remember two things:
Disability is nuanced, and one size does not fit all
Include people with apparent and non-apparent disabilities in your inclusion initiatives
How do you see intersectional marginalizations affecting people with disabilities?
Sarah: In my experience, we perceive and address disability from a white, middle-class perspective. I believe this stems from a lack of understanding about how people experience multiple marginalizations simultaneously. For example, a black woman with a disability will experience sexism, racism, and ableism concurrently, not one at a time.
I have a rare inner ear vestibular disease, and I went undiagnosed and misdiagnosed - with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia - for almost a decade. I’m a white woman with multiple privileges working in my favor; theoretically, I’m the most well-positioned to get the timely care I need in this country. And I didn’t.
If it took me nearly 10 years, imagine how long it would take a woman of color who’s experiencing multiple layers of discrimination all at once to get that same diagnosis.
How should we think about disclosure, balancing increasing awareness with the fear of marginalization? (Self ID vs. disclosure, personal experiences with disclosure)
Sarah: It took me a while to recognize the differences between self-disclosure and self-ID, especially given my personal experiences with disclosure, which haven’t all been positive. Educating employees about what each one of these is, along with the legal parameters and benefits, is a great first step businesses can take to increase participation in both.
Self-ID campaigns are used to gauge business diversity and inclusion efforts. My understanding is that they’re kept anonymous, aside from the HR employee assigned to the project. And when employees choose not to participate, it’s more difficult for leaders to know if they’re meeting the company-wide diversity goals they’ve set.
Self-disclosure, on the other hand, is most typically done when an employee needs to request an accommodation or adjustment. It can also happen during a conversation with a peer, a meeting with a manager, or in the chat of virtual employee training. As companies start prioritizing disability inclusion and offering learning opportunities, we are seeing the rate of self-disclosure increase. Regardless of whether or not the self-disclosure is impromptu or planned, it is a tricky area for human resources and legal departments. There is no way to predict or control how co-workers, managers, or executive leaders will respond to the new information they have. There is a fear that implicit biases and microaggressions may further marginalize the employees who are disclosing and open the company up to additional legal threats, including HIPPA violations.
So, how do we balance it all?
Be clear and transparent about your goals around self-ID campaigns and self-disclosure, and communicate those company-wide. If the goal is to build a safe environment where people feel comfortable disclosing, dedicate yourself to that goal and be steadfast in your efforts. If concerns arise from human resources and legal departments, which they may, I encourage you to address them in a way that doesn’t discourage employees from sharing and disclosing. We can’t fear the change we’re working toward.
What are some of the new ways you see disability showing up in the workplace today?
Sarah: Including people with disabilities - on a large scale - is a relatively new concept.
I often wonder if it’s showing up differently or if we’re just now recognizing and acknowledging its existence.
What can companies do better?
Don’t assume you know what someone else is capable of
Believe people when they tell you what they need
Amplify the voices of employees with disabilities
Educate yourself by following influencers with disabilities, reading books written by authors with disabilities, researching adjustments and accommodations, etc.
Use what you learn to educate others about disability
In essence, let’s remember that adopting a holistic and intersectional approach to disability starts with remembering that every disabled person has unique and individual needs.
Ready to upgrade your skills and your employees’ skills? Check out ReadySet’s Disability Inclusion Workshop and Eye Level’s Disability Inclusion Training Experiences, and take the next step on your disability inclusion journey!
Curious for more? Join us for a conversation with our CEO, Y-Vonne Hutchinson, and Sarah Kirwan on Friday, May 31st at 10:00 am PT.
Will you be the one to deepen the conversation? We can help with that! ReadySet offers a wide array of entertainment industry specific offerings that span consulting, strategy, learning and development, programmatic initiatives, and more. We are proud of our entertainment partnerships and the impact they have on the industry and its audiences.
