India

Disability Definition

A disabled person is a person with long-term physical, mental, intellectual and sensory impairment, which in interaction with barriers (social, communicational, cultural, economic, environmental, institutional, political,attitudinal or structural) hinders his/her effective participation in society equally with others.

21 conditions are considered to be disabilities:

Blindness, Low Vision, Leprosy – cured persons, Hearing Impairment (deaf & hard of hearing), locomotor disability, dwarfism, intellectual disability, mental illness, Autism Spectrum Disorder, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, chronic neurological conditions, specific learning disabilities, multiple sclerosis, speech and language disability, thalassemia, hemophilia, sickle cell disease, multiple disabilities including deaf blindness, acid attack victim, Parkinson’s Disease.

Reference: Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 – India

Employer Legal Requirements

According to the Center for Talent Innovation’s 2017 report Disabilities and Inclusion, the following are employer requirements in India:

– Provide facilities (such as training facilities), benefits (such as assistive devices), and a barrier-free accessible environment for people with disabilities, conform to new requirements for accessibility in all new buildings and building plans, frame and publish an Equal Opportunity Policy that also identifies posts and vacancies within the company that would be suitable for people with disabilities, appoint a “Liaison Officer” to oversee recruitment of and provisions for people with disabilities, if company size exceeds 20 employees, do not terminate anyone due to disabilities obtained while employed, do not discriminate based on disability, except when it is shown that “the impugned act or omission is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.”

Other employer guidance includes:

– There is no reporting requirement to the government. However, every establishment having 20 or more employees is required to publish an Equal Opportunity Policy which must identify positions suitable and open to disabled persons for employment, the facilities and amenities provided for disabled employees, appointment of a liaison officer to oversee these obligations.

– Such policy is required to be submitted to the state commission for disabilities. However, it has been reported that the state commissions are currently not insisting on submission of the same.

– Further, the employer is required to maintain records of disabled persons employed with details such as name, nature of disability, nature of work and facilities. The relevant authorities may inspect the policy and records for the purposes of determining compliance under the law.

– The government provides incentives (such as covering part of the cost of social security benefits) to employers in the private sector, if such employers ensure that at least 5% of their workforce are disabled persons.

– Such data is sensitive personal data under the Information Technology Act, 2000. Although the Rules relating to the processing of such sensitive data under the Technology Act is only in relation to a service provider collecting information for providing services, it is best to comply with the Rules. The Technology Act provides that sensitive personal information may be collected and processed only for a specific purpose and with the consent of the data subject.

– Employers are able to ask disability status during the application stage, after the offer has been made and after employment commences, assuming employee has been given notice of the data collection and their consent for processing has been procured for the stated purposes.

-Such data is necessary to ensure compliance under the RPD Act.

Cultural Norms

A strong cultural stigma against disability heightens the challenges for employees with disabilities in India.

Source: Coqual’s 2017 Report on Disabilities and Inclusion – Global Findings

Insights

According to Coqual’s 2017 Report on Disabilities and Inclusion:

India was one of the first countries to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities and, as the second most populous country in the world with an enormous population of young workers, is ripe with opportunity for companies tapping into the next generation of talent.

The incidence of visible disabilities among survey respondents in India is higher compared to the U.S. (49% vs 13% in the U.S.) – perhaps a reason the disclosure rates to HR are also high among Indian survey respondents (52% vs. 21% in the U.S.).

Of those surveyed in India who have visible disabilities, 74% say they will never achieve a position of power at their companies no matter how high-performing or qualified they are (vs. 50% in the U.S.). Meanwhile, among all employees with disabilities in the India sample, 93% expend some energy repressing parts of their personas in the workplace (vs. 60% in the U.S.) and 43% say “colleagues stare at me” (vs. 9% in the U.S.).

A robust culture of telecommuting and remote work poses a unique opportunity for employees with disabilities in India: fully 62% of employees with disabilities in the India sample work remotely or telecommute (vs. 30% in the U.S.), and 76% of employees with disabilities in the India sample who telecommute fell they are being promoted quickly (vs. 29% in the U.S.).

Talent Sourcing Resources

Enable India: Enable Employers Consultancy for D&I Vision Sensitization; Train and Hire; Policies and Procedures; Outsourcing services; Campus Recruitments; Scaling and Impact Services; SPICE™ Employability Framework. The Collaborative Model offered by Enable India is a talent sourcing model.

Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities As part of the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, facilitates empowerment of the persons with disabilities. Centralized resources for information on laws, regulations, policies, schemes, programs and NGO services. This organization also operates an employer / applicant matching services at www.disabilityjobs.gov.in.

Register as an Employer in the Government’s talent placement program. Also active on Facebook and Twitter.

Jobability is an online job portal that matches job seekers from people with disabilities with job vacancies, placements and resources. It provides a wealth of information and services for potential employees, employers and service providers, including advertising job vacancies online, managing applications, and providing access to training opportunities.

Developed by Leonard Chesire through its Access to Livelihoods programme, which is supported by the Accenture Foundation. This programme helps people with disabilities across India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, The Philippines and South Africa to gain the skills they need to enter employment or start their own business. Visit the website as an Employer to register and become part of their talent sourcing pipeline partners.

Pankh, a collaboration between Trust for Retailers & Retail Associates of India (TRRAIN) and Youth 4 Jobs Foundation (Y4J), offers a comprehensive 60-day training program, which includes trade specific training as well as training in life-skills, soft skills, and spoken English. Students spend the first 45 days sharpening their skills in the classroom. The last 15 days are spent applying their theoretical knowledge to practice with on-the-job training. At the end of the program, Pankh organizes campus recruitment and helps facilitate placement of all students.

References

Financial Times Article: Why start-ups are hiring India’s disabled workers

Coqual – Disabilities & Inclusion Report

World Bank India Page