As an employer, it’s your responsibility to create inclusive and accessible policies, procedures, and hiring practices.
This checklist is a great place to get started. It will help you make accessibility a built-in consideration as you recruit, interview, hire, and continue to support employees.
Not every accessibility consideration is listed here. However, if you go through the list, you’ll start your accessibility journey on the right track.
Job Descriptions
✅ Clearly state a role’s job functions and qualifications.
✅ Separate job tasks and skills into essentials and “nice-to-haves”.
✅ Emphasize skills and knowledge over work experience.
✅ Remove requirements that aren’t necessary, such as having a driver’s license.
✅ Outline the physical and environmental requirements of the job.
✅ Use plain language and avoid jargon.
✅ Use gender-neutral, inclusive language.
✅ Avoid vague phrases, such as excellent communication skills.
✅ When possible, avoid requiring unmeasurable qualifications, such as creativity.
✅ Offer alternative formats for applications.
✅ State that you will provide accommodations.
✅ Show how applicants can request accommodations.
✅ If applicable, include information about flexible work hours and/or environments.
✅ Keep in mind that travel may be difficult for people with disabilities.
Tip: Include a statement in job descriptions that your organization welcomes and encourages applications from people with disabilities and that accommodations are available.
Interview Process
✅ Offer flexible interview formats, such as in-person, phone, and video options.
✅ Provide advance notice and clear instructions for interviews.
✅ Conduct in-person interviews in an accessible location and provide information about the accessibility of the venue and meeting beforehand.
✅ Consider providing all candidates with interview questions ahead of time.
✅ Ensure that all interview questions are related to the job description.
✅ Limit the number of open-ended, hypothetical questions.
✅ Use standardized interview questions for all candidates.
✅ Allow additional time for people with disabilities to respond to questions.
✅ Allow support persons or service animals to accompany applicants to interviews.
✅Consider offering additional practice sessions, breaks, or coaching if needed.
✅ Make the interview panel as diverse as possible, ideally including people with disabilities.
✅ Ensure that all interview panellists have had unconscious bias training related to disabled people.
✅ Understand that some interviewees may respond faster or interrupt.
✅ Understand that some interviewees may show less voice or facial expression.
✅ Feel free to ask questions about a person’s job function, but know that employers do not have the right to ask questions about diagnosis or treatment.
✅ Understand that if a person discloses their disability in an interview, this must be kept confidential unless told otherwise by the interviewee.
✅ Avoid assumptions based on the first few minutes of the interview and allow disabled people more time to shine.
Tip: Consider offering working interviews where candidates show their abilities to perform specific tasks.
Selection Process
✅ Consider relevant transferable skills, rather than focusing on differences such as mannerisms or speech variations.
✅ Review applications with diversity and inclusion in mind and avoid biases.
✅ Consider the unique strengths that a person with a disability may bring to a job. Having a disability often helps develop strengths such as perseverance, adaptability, flexibility, and creativity.
✅ Focus on qualifications, experiences, and potential contributions.
✅ Consider how the candidate could be included on your team by customizing duties or job specifications to maximize their skills.
✅ Avoid making assumptions about candidates. Don’t assume that a disabled person will not be able to do the job duties.
✅ Document the rationale behind hiring decisions.
✅ Provide feedback to candidates with constructive insights.
Tip: Learn more about web accessibility best practices and ensure that your website and all application and communication portals and platforms you use are accessible.
Providing Accommodations
✅ Invite candidates to request accommodations and believe the candidate’s need for an accommodation when it is requested.
✅ Inform all employees of your job accommodation policies.
✅ Work with candidates and, if necessary, disability-serving organizations to provide accommodations.
✅ Respect the candidate’s privacy and confidentiality when providing accommodations.
✅ Customize job duties to fit the strengths of candidates with disabilities.
✅ Seek feedback on accessibility from candidates and employees.
✅ Ensure that all onboarding information is accessible and provided in alternate formats.
✅ Include funding for accommodations and disability-related expenses in your budget.
✅ Ensure that all management and staff have disability awareness and accommodations training.
✅ Communicate to all staff that having an accommodation is not special treatment, it is a necessity.
✅ Create individual accommodation plans as needed and include the disabled employee in the development of these plans.
✅ Check in regularly with those using accommodations to ensure usefulness.
Tip: Candidates with disabilities will know which accommodations are ideal for them, so follow their lead.
Becoming an Accessible Employer
✅ Use feedback to address barriers and challenges.
✅ Regularly review and update accessibility initiatives.
✅ Review documentation and policies for inclusivity.
✅ Educate staff with disability awareness, disability safety, and disability anti-bias training.
✅ Foster an inclusive workplace culture.
✅ Encourage continuous learning and dialogue about accessibility.
✅ Always presume competence and give employees with disabilities a chance to show what they can do.
Tip: Ask for employee feedback on your accessibility policies. This will help you refine your policies and measure the effectiveness of your accessibility initiatives. With their feedback, you can adjust your strategies as needed, continuously improving to promote greater inclusivity.
Continue your Accessibility Journey with SBBC
Small Business BC is a non-profit resource centre for BC-based small businesses. Our Workplace Accessibility Resources page is full of tips, tools, and more to support your next stage.
This article was developed in consultation with Melissa Lyon of Accessibility & Inclusion Matter Consulting.
We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Province of British Columbia through the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction.
