Flexible work as disability justice - and a win-win for all.

One of the saddest ironies in the history of work is that COVID-19 pandemic, with all the death and damage, is the closest the workplace has ever come to disability justice.

A ?study?by the Economic Innovation Group showed that while the initial pandemic-time job losses impacted disabled workers more than non-disabled workers, the recovery in employment was stronger for disabled people. Disability employment was higher by 2022 than it has ever been since 2010. Much of this improvement in disability employment can be credited to working from home.

Working from home and flexible schedules are crucial to providing job opportunities for many disabled people. This means that the recent push for employees to return to the office and for more rigid schedules could jeopardize the small uptick in disability employment.

The pandemic's effect on work opportunities for disabled people might be similar to the WW2 effect on women's employment. During that time, women were entering occupations that were previously closed to them. And then, at least in the US,?women were told to return to "their place" in the kitchen or entry-level clerical work. Now, 80 years later, even though women are significantly better educated, they still make much less than men, and there are still major gender representation gaps in "prestige" roles.

Will the tiny uptick in disability employment during the pandemic be as good as it ever got??

It does not have to be.

Justice is spelled F-L-E-X-I-B-I-L-I-T-Y

The pandemic experience dispelled the myth that remote work is "impossible." It also demonstrated that justice for many marginalized groups is much more attainable than many had previously envisioned. Losing flexible work would be a major step back for many groups traditionally excluded or disadvantaged in the workplace. But there does not need to be a loss. Intentionally building on what was learned about flexible working during the pandemic and thoughtfully implementing remote and hybrid work can revolutionize the workplace by facilitating a rise in productivity while empowering employees and boosting a sense of ownership and engagement.

Flexible work benefits both workers and organizations.

Flexibility matters to employee well-being. The Future Forum report indicates that fully in-person workers are most stressed, least happy, and least productive. Fully remote work has the best outcomes, with hybrid work in between.?Other types of flexibility also matter - working from home increases satisfaction by 65% and changing one's schedule by 62%.

Well-being matters to organizational outcomes. The analysis of 25 years' worth of data indicated that employee satisfaction is positively related to long-term stock returns. In a study of BT (formerly British Telecom) workers, happiness increased sales performance by 12%.

Flexible work is also environmental justice. In many cases, employee activism is focused not just on flexibility but on minimizing the environmental impact by eliminating commuting for those who can work from home.?

Fully unlocking the potential for remote work will require effort, including training managers in effectively managing and evaluating work with a focus on outcomes. But the reward can be a significantly increased talent pool, plus a much happier workforce.

And the gains in disability justice would not need to be lost.

Flexible work is disability justice. It is also a win-win for all.         

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?? Learn more about creating intersectionally inclusive organizations and ?? unlocking talent in my book, The Canary Code: A GUIDE TO NEURODIVERSITY, DIGNITY, AND INTERSECTIONAL BELONGING AT WORK.