Becoming disability confident helps remove barriers for job seekers and staff with disability and supports your agency to become an employer of choice.
A disability confident hiring manager:
- has the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to create an accessible, safe and inclusive recruitment process for people with disability
- actively seeks ways to ensure equal opportunities by removing barriers that prevent people with disability from fully participating in recruitment and employment processes
- partners with their human resources team to create a recruitment process where all candidates can showcase their unique talents and skills.
What actions can I consider?
- Build your understanding of inclusive recruitment processes through training, workshops and resources.
- Complete the Introduction to disability awareness training. This online learning promotes awareness of disability and the impact of societal attitudes and inherent stigma and discrimination on the lives of people with disability. It includes a section on disability and employment.
- Partner with your human resources team to identify and address access barriers and hazards in the workplace and within recruitment processes. These may include attitudinal, physical, communications and social barriers.
- Understand your legal obligations when a candidate identifies as a person with disability or shares information about their access requirements.
- Get to know the services for staff with disability including the Employment Assistance Fund and free workplace assessments for eligible staff.
- Have open conversations with job candidates. If you are unsure about a candidate’s accessibility requirements, ask them to explain their needs rather than assuming what they need.
- Encourage your colleagues to also become a disability confident recruiter.
Where can I learn more?
Familiarise yourself with these toolkits and resources that are referred to throughout this guide:
- JobAccess – Employer’s Toolkit
- IncludeAbility – Resources for employers
- Australian Human Rights Commission – Resources for job seekers and employees
- National Disability Services – Disability employment confidence
