Supporting Employees with Disabilities
Key Insights on Disclosure and Accommodations
Français • October 29, 2025
Deciding whether to disclose a disability at work is deeply personal and complex. Disabilities encompass a broad range of lived experiences that shape how individuals engage in the workplace.
Many factors influence disclosure, including workplace policies, leadership support, past experiences, and the outcomes of accommodation requests.1 While disclosure is often seen as a pathway to accommodations, it can also carry risks and expose individuals to potential negative outcomes.2
We wanted to examine facilitators and barriers to disclosure in the workplace and find out what they mean for inclusive workplaces. Between December 2024 and January 2025, we surveyed 1,000 working-age adults with disabilities.
Key statistics
- More than two-thirds (70.7 per cent) of employed individuals with disabilities have disclosed their disability to their current employer. Fewer—57.0 per cent—have disclosed their disability to prospective employers when applying for jobs.
- Disclosure is often driven by necessity, particularly for:
- Those needing accommodations (53.6 per cent)
- Addressing performance issues (50.3 per cent)
- Explaining absences (42.7 per cent)
- Those who choose not to disclose cited key concerns, including:
- Fear of being treated differently (47.4 per cent) A preference for privacy (31.9 per cent), or feeling discomfort when sharing personal details (31.1 per cent)
- Belief that disclosure is unnecessary to perform their job (48.9 per cent)
- Concerns about discrimination (29.6 per cent) or reduced job opportunities (32.1 per cent)
- Confidence in job security encourages disclosure—34.6 per cent reported this as a strong factor.
- Job seekers are less likely to disclose than employees are. While 70.7 per cent disclosed to their employer, only 57.0 per cent disclosed during job applications.
- Many hesitate due to fear of bias—over two-thirds worry disclosure could affect their evaluation (68.4 per cent) or hiring chances (69.2 per cent).
- However, accommodations influence disclosure:
- After having been asked about accommodations, 50.9 per cent disclosed
- On needing accommodations during recruitment, 38.6 per cent disclosed
- On whether they would need accommodations once hired, 49.1 per cent disclosed
- Nearly half (44.9 per cent) of respondents had requested workplace accommodations, but many faced the following challenges:
- Hesitated to share personal or medical details (31.4 per cent)
- Struggled with the timing of their request (30.7 per cent)
- Found the process too long (26.9 per cent)
- Employers lacked the knowledge to handle requests effectively (25.5 per cent)
- Accommodations provided did not fully meet their needs (24.1 per cent)
- Requests were denied outright (20.0 per cent)
- Beyond procedural challenges, some respondents encountered professional and social consequences:
- Experienced stigma (23.2 per cent)
- Faced retaliation (16.3 per cent)
- Top workplace supports that employees identified as highly beneficial include:
- Medical leave: 48.5 per cent prioritized time off for medical reasons
- Flexible schedules: 43.8 per cent valued the ability to adjust their working hours
- Remote work: 39.8 per cent emphasized its importance
- Unpaid leave options: 34.3 per cent saw this as highly beneficial
- Flexibility also plays a crucial role in the hiring process. Key accommodations that enhance accessibility include:
- Distraction-free assessments: 37.4 per cent found this highly valuable
- Virtual interviews: 30.2 per cent of respondents preferred this arrangement
- Breaks during assessments: 27.6 per cent noted its importance
Dashboards
The dashboards below allow you to explore our survey results to see what barriers your employees may be facing and what accommodations might make their work easier. Use the tabs below to navigate between topics. In each section, you can apply filters to customize the charts and view results most relevant to you. Please note that some visuals may not appear if applying filters results in small sample sizes. Select a topic to get started.
When and how employees decide to share
Barriers to and facilitators of disclosure for employees
Disclosing as a job applicant
Supporting employees and job applicants
Actionable insights
Employers play a key role in fostering accessibility. Beyond creating policies and environments where individuals feel comfortable disclosing, employers can implement inclusive practices that reduce the need for disclosure in the first place.
Integrating accessibility into policies, physical spaces, technologies, and workplace culture ensures a more inclusive environment for all employees.
Below, we present six practical steps employers can take to create and foster inclusive workplaces:
- Identify and implement workplace supports and accommodations that can be offered proactively—without requiring employees to navigate the formal accommodation process. Communicate these supports clearly to all employees across multiple channels, including in onboarding materials, on internal platforms, and in manager training. These include:
- making changes to policies related to flexible hours
- offering remote work
- medical leave
- unpaid leave
- implementing practices such as mentoring and coaching
- Make accommodations readily available in the job application and interview process, without requiring the candidate’s disclosure. Options could include virtual interviews, sharing questions in advance, offering multiple assessment formats, allowing breaks during tests, and providing distraction-free spaces. Clearly outline these options in job postings to simplify the application process.
- Shift the focus from self-identification to meaningful support in employee surveys. Use voluntary, confidential surveys to assess accessibility needs and workplace supports rather than to identify employees with disabilities. This aggregate data will enable employers to introduce changes that support all employees without requiring individual disclosure.
- Provide managers with regular, practical training on disclosure and accommodation requests as this recognizes the role managers play in shaping workplace culture and fostering accessibility. This training will also provide clear guidelines on managers’ responsibilities to reduce barriers and support employees who seek workplace accommodations.
- Develop a step-by-step guide that outlines how and when employees can request accommodations, including response times, key contacts, and access to resources for making accommodation requests. Ensure that this information is easy to find for both employees and leaders. A clear, detailed, structured process will enhance accessibility to resources for making accommodation requests within all organizations.
- Create a disability employee resource group (ERGs) where employees with disabilities who choose to participate can share experiences, provide support, and contribute to policy discussions. These groups should be engaged in discussions related to any organizational changes to accommodations or accessibility practices as these discussions will provide insights through the lens of participants’ lived experiences. Assign senior leadership sponsors to advocate for group recommendations.
- Monique A. and M. Gignac et al., “Does It Matter What Your Reasons Are When Deciding to Disclose (or Not Disclose) a Disability at Work? The Association of Workers’ Approach and Avoidance Goals with Perceived Positive and Negative Workplace Outcomes.” Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation 31, no. 3 (2021): 638–51, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-020-09956-1.
- Von Schrader, Sarah, Valerie Malzer, and Susanne Bruyère, “Perspectives on Disability Disclosure: The Importance of Employer Practices and Workplace Climate.” Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal 26, no. 4 (December 2014): 237–55, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10672-013-9227-9.
This research was conducted by Signal49 Research in partnership with the Canadian Association for Supported Employment (CASE), a national association that facilitates opportunities for employment service providers, employers, and other partners to increase employment inclusion in Canada for persons experiencing disability. The research supports CASE in its mandate to increase the social and economic inclusion of persons experiencing disability and, specifically, in its MentorAbility Canada initiative which leverages facilitated short-term mentoring opportunities, networking and learning to increase workplace inclusion of persons experiencing disability in Canada.
This research was commissioned by CASE’s MentorAbility Canada initiative, which is funded by the Government of Canada’s Opportunities Fund for Persons with Disabilities.
Many colleagues at Signal49 Research helped to bring this research to life. This research initiative was designed and executed by Leah Ringwald, Associate Director, PhD; Diogo Borba, Senior Research Associate, PhD; and Tyler De Melo, Research Analyst, MA. Tabatha Thibault, Senior Research Associate, PhD, contributed to the survey development and analysis. Lindsay Coffin, Principal Research Associate, M.Sc., MBA, reviewed and provided feedback on the early drafts of the report. Dianne Williams, Vice President, and Liz Marcil, Associate Director, Human Capital, MA, reviewed and provided feedback on the final draft. This output was designed by Natasha Delrosario, Graphic Designer.
We also wish to thank our project partners and the members of the research advisory board who supported this research:
- Véronique Church-Duplessis, Senior Director, Research and Impact, Mentor Canada
- Lindsay Evans, Organizational Effectiveness & IDEA-B Lead, Home Hardware Stores Limited
- Don Gallant, National Director, Ready, Willing, and Able (RWA)
- Michael Gottheil,Senior Counsel, ARCH Disability Law Center
- Maureen Haan, President and CEO, Canadian Council on Rehabilitation and Work (CCRW)
- Marie Ryan, Partner, Goss Gilroy Management Consultants
- Lisa Noel Smith, Director of Special Care Services, WorkSafeBC
We also thank the individuals who took the time to participate in this research as survey participants.
