Every employer seeks to identify top-tier talent. Inclusive hiring and onboarding practices aren’t just about building an accepting organizational culture. They also help you reach a broader talent pool, evaluate candidates more equitably, and keep employees longer. Certified Rehabilitation Counselors work with organizations to help hiring managers and leadership understand how disability can affect someone’s ability to obtain and retain a job. Having a CRC on staff is one of the best ways to ensure an expert oversees accommodations, return-to-work strategies, and all things inclusive people management. From hiring and onboarding to interviewing, a CRC’s input can make a big difference.
How CRCs Help with Inclusive Job Listings to Attract Top Talent
Every great team starts with finding the right talent. Making opportunities accessible from the start ensures you don’t let systemic barriers keep candidates with disabilities from connecting with a role they might be a perfect fit for.
CRCs know implicit biases affect outcomes, job performance, and readiness. A great place to start is ensuring you’re not creating unnecessary barriers in the job description.
Ensure every job listing is screen-reader friendly and uses text on a background that doesn’t create issues for folks with visual impairments. Test application portals for compatibility with screen readers, keyboard navigation, and other assistive technologies to avoid limiting who you can hire because you may not use these technologies yourself. A policy that supports alternative application methods is also important. Every listing should have a disclaimer inviting candidates to reach out about barriers they’re experiencing, and an internal process for alternative application methods should be in place
Likewise, the actual listing itself should be as clear as possible. Writing skills-focused job descriptions and avoiding unnecessary qualifications unrelated to the work helps clarify what you’re looking for in an applicant.
Blanket job description items, like a driver’s license or lifting a certain weight, that aren’t actually required for a role can also deter folks who meet all other requirements from applying.
Working with a CRC to Find Talent
CRCs are well-versed in a region’s systems and organizations that can help you find the ideal job candidate. CRCs have connections to universities, state Vocational Rehabilitation agencies, and disability employment organizations that can connect you with talent ready to work.
A few things can go further to encourage people with disabilities to apply to your organization. The first tip is the most straightforward: explicit invitations in the job description! Stating that “candidates with disabilities are encouraged to apply” shows you’re not intimidated by functional limitations and that they won’t be a disqualifying factor in an application. Including an accessibility or accommodation contact in your job description can help attract diverse applicants.
HR or people management staff don’t always understand disability and its implications in the workplace. Having CRCs in these departments helps connect professionals with better methods for inclusive hiring and talent acquisition. This expertise also extends to creating interviewing processes that evaluate candidates more equitably.
Why Inclusive Hiring is Easier with a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor
Interviews are an organization’s best chance to determine whether a candidate is the right fit beyond the standard application process. To build more inclusive interview processes, start with accessibility.
First, accessible interview methods help offer candidates options. Offering in-person or virtual interviews can ensure factors outside their control do not limit anyone. Likewise, the rise in AI interview tools or self-tape videos means more technology is embedded in the interviewing process. A CRC can help ensure these are accessible to all.
If you conduct interviews in person, make sure facilities and other building components are accessible to people with physical disabilities, including entrances, elevators, interview rooms, and restrooms. For virtual interviews, consider captioning, screen-reader compatibility, and reliable alternatives if the technology fails, as we all know it does from time to time.
Another big component of an inclusive hiring process is normalizing accommodation requests. Instead of including legal language that states you will provide required accommodations upon request, add a section to your application or interview invitation that asks, “What accommodations are necessary to provide a successful interview?”
Not sure how to navigate reasonable accommodations or understand the benefit of certain requests? That’s what a CRC does best; in fact, sometimes an interview may not take place if a candidate believes the organization can’t facilitate the requested accommodations.
Future Topics to Explore in Workplace Accessibility
CRCs bring expertise in vocational assessment, transferable skills, disability-related barriers, accommodations, assistive technology, and employment support. Next time, we’ll explore how onboarding can use these accessibility and inclusivity considerations to set new employees on the best path to mutual success.
Have a topic you’d like to see covered in the CRCC Connect Blog? Reach out to us here. We’d love to hear your ideas and insights.
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