We had a chat with CEO of Disability Rights UK, Kamran Mallick who spoke of the systematic barriers in place that exclude those who are differently abled, from physical impairments to learning disabilities.
“There are artificial barriers that we’ve created as a society and those are the things that disable us, not the health condition”, says Mallick.
As a wheelchair user, Mallick openly described the multiple setbacks he faces when applying for a job, from both an accessibility and bias standpoint.
“When I started looking for work, I used to go to recruitment agencies and quite often I would arrive at their building and I couldn’t even get through their front door because there’d be a step, or the door might be too narrow, and the meeting rooms were upstairs. It was excluding straight away”, he says.
Mallick also noted that some recruiters saw how he looked and felt he would be a more difficult pitch to their clients because he was differently abled.
“The stereotypes are that disabled people are not as capable and that’s just not true, but they will cost your business more money because you’re going to have to make reasonable adjustments”, says Mallick.
Within the disabled community, more people choose to go down the self-employment route, becoming entrepreneurs for example, compared to non-disabled people.
Moreover, it’s even more of a double-edged sword if you have an intersectional identity. Mallick is of Pakistani heritage and this, in conjunction with his disability, makes him a target of multi-layered discrimination in and outside the workplace.
Consequently, when it comes to employment, those with disabilities and those from underrepresented backgrounds are often unable to rise the social mobility ladder or taking low-paying jobs in the service industry, in contrast to the majority who sit at the top of such institutions and organisations.
But for Mallick and the rest of the differently abled population, representation can really make a difference.
Even as we watch this year’s Paralympics, witnessing differently abled people achieve greatness can hugely impact the confidence and self-esteem of those with disabilities, as it transforms the perception of what society tells them they can achieve.
Nonetheless, there is a long way to go when it comes to the global workforce.
“When you’re out and about, do you see disabled people as doctors, as nurses, as engineers, as accountants, as lawyers? Why is it that those people are not getting to those positions?”, Mallick says.
As Mallick points out, the mobility outcomes of people who are differently abled are consistently worse than those without a disability, across occupation, education and housing.
For example, according to the government, only 16% of people with a disability were upwardly mobile into the professional classes, compared with 38% from the higher-professional class who were downwardly mobile into the working classes.
When it comes to job insecurity and social mobility, access, resources, representation and education seem to be the solutions to moving to a more equitable future for those with disabilities.
Nonetheless, it’s also about encouraging the current workforce of change-makers and pioneers to lead consciously.
Mallick believes that to be an inclusive leader, “you must be a good listener and facilitate a culture of trust and open conversations”.
And like he explained earlier, the barriers start and end with the systems we already have in place.
So when you enter your workplace tomorrow morning, take a look around and think about how much more you can do for the differently abled community and what changes you can facilitate now and in the future.
Being an inclusive, conscious leader starts with us.
