A survey conducted by assistive technology business, Texthelp, has found only 28 per cent of HR professionals are ‘very confident’ in identifying different types of conditions that are considered a neurodivergence. Almost one in 10 (9 per cent) were not confident at all.
Despite this, more than three quarters (78 per cent) of respondents said that D&I has become increasingly important in the past two years. This is a trend in both US and UK businesses (80.43 per cent and 73.83 per cent respectively).
Looking at D&I priorities of HR/D&I professionals, race (38 per cent) was chosen as the top priority, followed by gender (25 per cent). Socio-economic background, disability, and sexual orientation were ranked the lowest at 16 per cent, 15 per cent and 6 per cent respectively. Even with this lack of neurodiversity awareness, 33 per cent of respondents were very confident in knowing what accommodations can be provided in the workplace for employees who are neurodivergent.
Demonstrating this, the majority of respondents (94 per cent) had established practices to support neurodiversity and disability inclusion in the workplace. These include:
● Giving more time on written or reading tasks for people with dyslexia in recruitment (53 per cent)
● Installing reading and writing assistive software, such as speech-to-text dictation to support employees with dyslexia (54 per cent)
● Barrier-free workplace adjustments for wheelchair users (58 per cent)
● Providing special keyboards, such as for arthritis (55 per cent)
Installing screen-magnification or screen-reading software for people with low vision or blindness (53 per cent)
The results were polled from 291 HR & D&I respondents.
“Neurodiversity should be an important element of any company’s D&I strategy,” said Martin McKay, CEO of Texthelp. “However, as this research has shown, there remains a lack of understanding of neurodiversity and the various forms it can take. As many as one in seven individuals have some form of neurodivergence, and many conditions are not visible.
“Thankfully, awareness is increasing and more businesses are stepping up to provide the necessary support for employees with neurodifferences,” he added. “Combining employee awareness with practical company processes will make sure staff from all backgrounds are supported by their employer.”
