How To Make Your Company More Inclusive For Physically Disabled People

61 million Americans live with a disability. And yet, there is so little representation of physically disabled people— in film and television, in sports, and in the workplace.

Finding a job can be even more challenging for people who use a wheelchair or cane. Physically disabilities are often treated like a monolith and derogatory terms like ‘‘handicapped’’ are still used. Physically disability representation is lacking in the C-Suite and executive level positions. If you’ve worked in corporate America, you probably haven’t seen many executives with physical disabilities, but physically disabled CEOs are changing the narrative.

‘‘People need to be aware that disability itself isn’t just one thing. A lot of different diagnoses are part of this community,’’ says Wesley Hamilton, the CEO and founder of Disabled But Not Really Foundation. He has been in a wheelchair since 2012.

Forbes spoke with CEOs about how to make the workplace more inclusive for physically disabled people.

Mentor Physically Disabled Professionals

Like all people, physically disabled people need mentorship. From finding jobs to managing work-life balance, there is so much for young professionals to learn. Mentorship is a great way to prepare physically disabled people for executive level positions. Despite stereotypes, many physically disabled people are running companies and leading happy and successful lives.

‘‘I think that starts with people with disabilities who are the kinds of people that they might want to be looking for. And find out what they need,’’ says Eric Lupton, the CEO of Life Saver Pool Fence Systems. He says having cerebral palsy isn’t holding him back from thriving in the C-Suite.

‘‘I’ve never had a bad day, because I’m the only person who gets to decide what the quality of my day is. When someone tells me that day they chose that. I get to pick every day whether I thought I had a good day or a bad day,’’ says Lupton. ‘‘And using these kind of superpowers that I’ve obtained from being disabled, I’ve been able to build and grow this business in a really powerful way.’’

Avoid Offensive Language

A lot of the language surrounding disabilities is highly offensive. From using the r-word to calling people slow, having a disability is not something to be mocked or erased. It is never okay to use words like ‘‘handicapped’’ and ‘‘cripple’’ when describing physically disabled people.

If you work with a physically disabled employee, make sure to ask them how they prefer to be referred to. Do not ask them offensive terms to avoid and do a little research online to find out. If you have any physically disabled friends or loved ones have conversations about how to be more inclusive in your language.

Make Your Office Accessible

This is the most important part of supporting physically disabled people in the workplace. You can start by making sure you have an alternative to stairs, including an elevator and ramps. Do some research on the Americans With Disabilities Act and what you are required to do by law. You can even hire a consultant to help to make your company and office setting more accessible.

‘‘A large number of people with disabilities believe that they can’t work. I think a lot of them are wrong. I think there’s a lot of people who would love to be a part of the workforce,’’ he says And physically disabled people can’t thrive at work without an accessible office.

But Hamilton believes stereotypes about physically disabled people often get in the way of having opportunities to be in an office environment in the first place.

‘‘Individuals with physical disabilities are more prone to live independent lives if society perceives them as independent individuals. People see us as individuals that are sick and dependent,’’ Hamilton says. ‘‘You don’t know the ability when you just put the term in front of a person, but if you get to know the person, you’ll understand disability.’’