The Disability Equality Index has become the leading independent, third-party resource for benchmarking disability inclusion policies and programs inside corporations, and is now trusted by more than 70% of the Fortune 100 and nearly half of the Fortune 500. Since its inception in 2015, participation in the Disability Equality Index has grown 6x – from 80 companies in the benchmark’s inaugural year to 485 in 2023. A total of 405 companies achieved top scorer status on the 2023 DEI with scores of 80 and above, and these companies have been recognized as 2023’s “Best Places to Work for Disability Inclusion”.
A visible commitment to disability inclusion by senior leadership is highly correlated with strong performance on the Disability Equality Index as more than 80% of the 175+ companies whose CEO has signed Disability:IN’s CEO Letter on Disability Inclusion scored 80 or above in 2023. The companies that have completed the Disability Equality Index and the leaders who’ve signed the CEO Letter recognize that the 1.3 billion people living with a disability worldwide represent a tremendous source of talent and innovation for their workforce and market share for their brands, and they’re leveraging the Disability Equality Index to help them build accessible, equitable, and inclusive businesses that resonate with people with disabilities.
Among the practices that have become foundational to a disability-inclusive organization, 89% of 2023 U.S. participants indicated that they have a disability-focused Employee Resource Group and 91% include disability-focused information in new hire orientation. Workplace mental wellness and flexible work options became critical points of emphasis during the Covid-19 pandemic, and these trends only appear to be strengthening post-pandemic as 99% of U.S. participants report offering flexible work options (up from 96% in 2022) and 85% offer wellness benefits that extend beyond their employee assistance program (EAP) and mental health benefits (84% in 2022). All of this points to a growing collective voice that is calling for greater disability inclusion inside corporations, galvanized by an increased emphasis on confidential self identification initiatives. A total of 93% of 2023 U.S. participants encourage employees to self-identify as a person with a disability (91% in 2022), and this focus likely contributes to a rise in median corporate self identification rates to 4.6% among companies reporting data which is up from a median of 4% in 2022.
Additionally, a two-year unscored Global Disability Equality Index pilot concluded in 2022. The pilot was limited to select companies and achieved participation from 98 companies spanning 66 countries. Findings from the global pilot informed the launch of a scored benchmark opening in 2024 to a broader range of companies.
To learn more about the results of the 2023 Disability Equality Index, including key insights and trends mapped across the Disability Equality Index’s adoption framework, check out the 2023 Disability Equality Index Report.