Talking to Managers about Disability: Communications Tools
Most organizations have done the work to develop policies and practices that support disability inclusion in the workplace. Managers and supervisors play a key role in implementing these policies, and research has shown that one of the most important factors in how they do that is their belief that top management thinks disability inclusion is important.
Communication Tools to Support Disability Inclusion will enable workplace leaders (HR, Diversity and Inclusion, Company Owners or Executives) to send out the right messages to the right people in the right way. Here is what we mean:
- The right messages focus on the importance of disability inclusiveness to business success.
- The right people are managers and supervisors. They set the tone for disability inclusiveness in their own teams and across the organization.
- The right way is to use short burst messages that are simple, clear, relevant and engaging.
We offer communication tool templates on 11 topics. Under each topic you will find sample communications you can adapt to your own organization and tips for using these messages with your managers and supervisors.
If you have questions about policies and practices that can support disability inclusion in the workplace, visit http://disabilitytoolkit.org. To learn more about the topics and tools displayed here, contact the Northeast ADA Center.
Communication Tool Topic Menu
- Topic 1. Why this matters - How disability inclusiveness helps our business
- Topic 2. Setting the tone - The importance of managers and supervisors
- Topic 3. Building trust - Making it safe to come forward with a disability
- Topic 4. Defining disability - Obvious and non-obvious disabilities
- Topic 5. Working together – Interacting with people with disabilities at work
- Topic 6. Getting talent - Recruiting and hiring people with disabilities
- Topic 7. Disclosing a disability - When an employee tells her manager about a disability
- Topic 8. Federal Contractors - Encouraging employees to self-identify as a person with a disability
- Topic 9. Questions about accommodation at work?
- Topic 10. Our managers' resources - Disability information, contacts and services for managers in our workplace
- Topic 11. Our employees' resources - Disability information, contacts and services for employees in our workplace