Category: Employment

Sensory processing directly influences the productivity, social interaction and wellbeing of neurodivergent workers. Some neurodivergent individuals experience sensory overload to sound and light for example. On the other hand others need heightened sensations such as constant movement or touching. When it comes to workplaces, architectural design should incorporate neuroergonomics.

A study by two researchers in Brazil looked at the literature on neurodivergence and how the brain works, and applied this to workplace design. The different neurodiverse conditions are listed in a chart with suggested solutions and adaptations. Inclusive and biophilic design is good for the productivity levels of all workers. Consequently, designing for the neurodivergent community increases the level of comfort for everyone. The image below is from the article.

Spatial references

Intuitive and directional wayfinding gives neurodivergent people the instant cues they need to find their way even in familiar environments. It creates a comforting sense of order and reduces confusion. Having many identical spaces can also cause confusion if the wayfinding isn’t clear. Landmarks, use of colour and of course signage are key.

Work environments that promote flexible and adaptable layouts not only meet productive demands, but also favour greater interaction. There is increased comfort, and inclusion of employees and reduces the stress generated by a rigid organization.

Biophilic design

Natural elements that represent the qualities of nature are good for everyone. Biophilic design involves building nature-like environments that provide refuge and relaxation. This allows individuals to establish their sensory and social control over their surroundings. A common approach is to provide green areas with access from common areas. Sensory gardens can also provide a calming effect.

Thermal comfort

The temperature of many working environments is cause for conflict because not everyone experiences heat and cold in the same way. Thermal design strategies including the ability to open windows and naturally ventilated atriums and outdoor courtyards. Ability to control the temperature at individual worksites is the optimum of course but not always possible.

Noise and lighting

Noise and interruptions can compromise employees’ focus and productivity. On the other hand total quiet can be just as bad because any small noise is deafening to some. That is one reason for employees to don headphones. One solution is to create natural calming sounds.

Appropriate lighting for each workspace is essential and natural light is best and most productive. Where this is not possible, adjusting the colour temperature of the light across the day is shown to be effective. Florescent lights that buzz and flicker are particularly distracting for neurodivergent individuals.

The title of the article is, Neuroergonomics, inclusive architecture, and mental health: Designing neurodiversity-responsive work environments.

From the abstract

Approximately 17% of the world’s population is considered neurodivergent. This means they have patterns of cognitive, emotional and social development that diverge significantly from what is generally expected. Consequently, workspace design must consider new demands that meet the needs of this group, as well as all employees.

More than 20 million Brazilians have been diagnosed with burnout, anxiety and depressive disorders. This study investigated the contributions of neuroergonomics to mental health and the inclusion of neurodiversity in the workplace. Evidence-based design ideas linked to inclusive architecture were considered

We considered spatial references (wayfinding), spatial organization (layout), biophilic design, thermal comfort, acoustics, integrative lighting and degree of sensory stimulation. This study contributes to the planning of healthy, comfortable, safe and inclusive environments.

Based on evidence, Philip Taylor’s blog article busts some well-worn myths about ageing and work. Population ageing has led to a lot of debate about prolonging working lives to reduce pension costs. There’s also much said about labour shortages as many current workers retire. But older people say they are discriminated against in the workplace. So, what is the reality?

Taylor’s article goes right to the point in dispelling eight myths about discrimination only happening to older people. The research references are included in the article. Here are the myths in brief.

The myths

Myth 1: Age discrimination is only experienced by older people. Younger people also report discrimination based on age. Paradoxically, older people may also be perpetrators of age discrimination, including other older people.

Myth 2: Generations have different orientations to work. Employee life stage and competing home life responsibilities at any age are key – not generation. Claims that one generation has ‘better’ attributes than another are not helpful for workplace managers.

Myth 3: Older people are a homogenous group. Older and younger people have different aspects of their identity that impact their work experience of inclusion and exclusion. People are not one dimensional at any age. Should we, therefore, even talk about ‘older workers’ or just talk about workers or staff?

Myth 4: Older workers outperform younger ones in terms of reliability, loyalty, work ethic and life experience. Performance is unrelated to age. Addressing ageism with these stereotypes is no good for either older or younger people. Job performance varies more between people of the same age than between different ages.

Myth 5: Older people have a lifetime of experience that managers should recognise. It’s not experience itself that’s valuable, it’s relevant experience. It’s too easy to see older people as societal perceptions of ‘the past’ and not able to contribute to the future.

Myth 6: Younger workers are more dynamic, entrepreneurial, and tech-savvy than older workers. People should not be assumed to have (or not have) a given quality just because of their age. Workers of various ages may have similar skills, attributes and experiences.

Myth 7: Younger workers feel entitled and won’t stick around. In reality younger workers are more likely to be in insecure employment and to experience unemployment. Age has little to do with commitment to work. Youth unemployment rates are often higher than those of older people.

Myth 8: Older people who stay on at work are taking jobs from younger people. Evidence is that when employment rates increase for older people, they also increase for younger people. So age may have no effect. One is not substituting the other.

In summary

Ageism can happen at any age and using stereotypes is unhelpful at both ends of the age spectrum. Pitting generations against each other doesn’t engender an inclusive workplace approach for either management or staff. The focus on discrimination of older people in the workplace leaves younger people invisible in the discourse.

The title of this informative article is, Myth busting aging at work. You will re-think the way ageism is applied – it’s about all ages. After all, we are all in this together.

From the US comes a disability inclusion toolkit that focuses on the inclusion of people with disability. It also includes people who are neurodivergent. It has resources, best practices and is informed by the perspectives of people living and working with disability.

The Disability Inclusion Toolkit was produced by the Dallas Chamber of Commerce. The data, resources, and best practices are informed by the perspective of experts and people living and working with disability.

Diversity and inclusion: Can we co-design our work?

Employers are experimenting with managing the changing face of work and employee feedback is of course essential. So, will universal design principles and the practice of co-design come to the fore in designing work? Perhaps.

Most employees currently working in a hybrid model want it retained. A report by McKinsey found this was the case across the board. They also found that marginalised groups wanted it more than others:

• Employees with disabilities were 11 percent more likely to prefer a hybrid work model than employees without disabilities.
• More than 70 percent of male and female respondents expressed strong preferences for hybrid work, but nonbinary employees were 14 percent more likely to prefer it.
• LGBQ+ employees were 13 percent more likely to prefer hybrid work than their heterosexual peers.

However, the McKinsey report highlighted potential pitfalls:

• Hybrid work has the potential to create an unequal playing field if not done correctly.
• Companies need to prioritize the most critical inclusion practices: work-life support, team building, and mutual respect.
• Marginalized groups are more likely to prefer a hybrid work model and would be more likely to leave if it was not available.

Hybrid good for inclusion

In their survey, 75 percent of all respondents said that they prefer a hybrid working model. Only 25 percent said they prefer to be full time on-site. An employee who might be hiding a disability, gender identity or sexual orientation can avoid declaring it. Concealing this information takes a toll on employee wellbeing and performance. Until workplaces are truly more inclusive hybrid works well for many groups. 

The title of the report is, How can hybrid work models prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion? The article was re-published by the World Economic Forum with permission.

Inclusive Job Descriptions Toolkit

Diversity, equity and inclusion are the current buzz words in the workplace, and it all starts with recruiting. So, how inclusive are job descriptions? Using gender inclusive language, meaning cisgender inclusive, now seems normal. Now we need to think about language for all marginalised groups. Grand Valley State University Libraries has an Inclusive Job Descriptions Toolkit to help. 

The toolkit is focused on university recruitment, but the information can be used in other contexts. They use the acronym IDEA – Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access.  

The first part of the toolkit outlines best practices and the second part provides an equity lens for reviewing the job descriptions. The appendices include additional language and job description templates.

The toolkit lists the components of a job description some of which are specific to the university context. However, all job descriptions should give an employee a clear guide to the role and what is expected of them. A job description answers the question “What does this role do?” The next section gives guidance on writing inclusive job descriptions. 

Writing an inclusive job description

Inclusive language reduces the likelihood of applicants from self-selecting out. Biased language can occur unintentionally and can have a negative impact on recruitment efforts. For example, a job being suited to a recent graduate may signal a desire to avoid older workers.

The section on tips for writing job descriptions has many of the usual points for clear communication. For example: conciseness, simple gender inclusive language, and avoiding acronyms. Other tips are on phrasing such as moving from “excellent communication skills” to “ability to communicate clearly and effectively”.

The toolkit lists gender, race, and ableist coded words that most people wouldn’t consider as non-inclusive:

• Female-Coded Words: Agreeable, empathetic, sensitive, affectionate, feel, support, collaborate, honest, trust, commit, interpersonal, understanding, compassion, nurture, and share.
• Male-Coded Words: Aggressive, confident, fearless, ambitious, decisive, head-strong, assertive, defend, independent, battle, dominant, outspoken, challenge, driven and superior.
• Racially Coded Words: Excellent English-language skills, clear-spoken, native English speaker, cultural fit, nice, polite, Latino/Latina, professionalism
• Ableist-Coded Words: Energetic, athletic, able-bodied individual, talking with students, walking through the building

The section that follows gives examples of how to make changes to phrasing. The section on ableist phrasing could do with some improvements, but it gives the idea. 

Equity lens for diversity and inclusion

Applying an equity lens is a reminder that an organisation cannot embody IDEA without reviewing and updating their job descriptions and recruitment practices. 

“It is explicit in drawing attention to the inclusion of marginalized populations, typically communities of color, and can be adapted to focus on other communities. … An equity lens will not tell you what action to take. Rather, the lens helps you discuss and reflect on the equitableness of the action and decision-making process.”

The document can also be found on the Library Reports and Communication webpage. Grand Scholar Works is a service of the Grand Valley State University Libraries. Michigan USA.

The Future of the Office in Australia

Sourceable reports on the changing face of the office – the place where hybrid work is possible. The article has a real-estate focus but includes a nod to access and inclusion:

“… employers are facing rising pressure to address environmental, social, and governance issues in their offices and policies. Buildings that are inclusive and accessible for all workers have become more prominent in the industry, with popular features of new office buildings including prayer rooms and gender-neutral facilities.”

“The universal design approach aspires to create spaces that are not just accessible or usable, but inclusive for everyone.” This is the opening line of a chapter on universal design and workplaces in the Handbook of High-Performance Workplaces.  Authors Imogen Howe and Andrew Martel remind us that disability can be temporary or permanent and at any stage of life. Complying with codes in workplace design is not that same as quality design or even adequate design. That means some people will experience barriers that prevent participation and make them feel unwelcome and second class.

Seven principles expanded

Howe and Martel turn to the seven principles of universal design and take them one step further. They should be applied to assistive technology, tools, organisational or operational decisions, as well as the physical space of the workplace. Integrating these elements into a universal design approach benefits all workers.   The authors explain how the principles of universal design have moved from the 1997 interpretation to a more contemporary one. The principles were formed primarily with the built environment in mind. Universal design thinking has evolved to embrace a broader concept of inclusion in all aspects of life.  Universal design should remain agile and flexible to respond to socio-cultural advancements. It was never meant to be one-size-fits-all as this is impossible. An inclusive society needs both mainstream and targeted individual solutions as well.  A checklist is included at the end of the chapter where each of the principles is applied to workplace situations. This is one of the difficulties of explaining universal design. On one hand it isn’t about a checklist – it’s a thinking process. But designers need something to guide them. In co-design processes with end users, checklists often become redundant. However, checklists are a good place to start for people new to the concept of designing inclusively. 

From the conclusion

Since the pandemic many businesses have introduced flexible work arrangements which have proven to be efficient and productive. Urban-based office buildings are just one place to work. Working from home is one strategy that suits people who struggle with transport or have caring duties.  A universal design approach is a way employers can attract people with diverse needs when seeking work. The principles of universal design can assist designers to implement inclusive thinking in their designs. Implementing these principles early in the design process is inexpensive and can result in more flexible, sustainable buildings that benefit all users. The title of the chapter is Universal Design and it is open access.

Being forced to work from home during a pandemic is very different to choosing this mode of work. The pandemic showed us that we could work from home successfully and employees want it to continue. This is the outcome of some recent research shows many people are happier working from home. And for some, working from home is the only real option.

An article in The Conversation explains the subtle but important differences working from home makes to peoples lives. Time saved in the commute means more time for short active trips. Researchers found that snacking increased, but the quality of the snacks improved. Mental health improved when employees were supported by colleagues and the organisation. Concerns over team work, connection and attachment mean that a hybrid model works well.

Good for some, necessary for others

Workers with disability favour working from home for obvious reasons. Not having to worry about access to transport, the built environment, and workplace design. When you factor in the fatigue and pain experienced during a commute the benefits are compounded. But it’s not just people with physical disabilities that benefit. People who are neurodiverse are better able to manage their health conditions as well.

Women, especially mothers and caregivers, reported improved wellbeing. The added flexibility enabled them to balance paid employment with unpaid caregiving.

Giving employees the choice to work from home at least some of the time during the week is a step forward in the equity stakes. Flexibility gives people with disability of any age the opportunity to compete more equitably with others. And it’s not all one-sided – employers benefit too.

The title of the article is, Working from home can make us healthier and happier. 

The problem with trying to apply the classic seven principles of universal design everywhere is that they don’t apply universally. This becomes apparent in an article about ethics and the workplace where some of the principles cannot apply. The seven principles are to help people think about inclusion, not use them as a checklist.

A paper published in Journal of Business Ethics explores the seven principles in relation to workplaces and people with disability. It soon becomes clear that it isn’t that useful especially if trying to apply all seven. Consequently, businesses will struggle to apply the seven principles and likely discouraged from taking action.

No matter how much universal design thinking goes into making workplaces inclusive, there will always be jobs that some people cannot do. The aim is to find or create jobs that suit people with different disabilities. That’s where ethics come into play.

In the article, the authors argue that inclusive and ethical workplaces involve both organisational and spatial choices. The key is cross-fertilization between organisation studies and universal design. This will improve understanding of the ethical issues when thinking about including people with disability in the workplace.

Cross-fertilising organisational and spatial studies with a universal design approach allows for more ethically sound and inclusive workplaces. This is useful for discovering what is possible and what is not. This also requires abandoning any notion of a perfect productive body. We are all collectively vulnerable and interdependent within workplaces.

Abandoning the Notion of a Perfect and Productive Body

Rethinking inclusion at work

Universal design also prompts a paradigm shift from deficit to diversity. The focus shifts to embracing the needs and abilities of all workers and ensuring equal opportunities for participation. The scope of universal design also encompasses all facets of organisational structure and power dynamics.

The title of the article is, Universal Design for the Workplace: Ethical Considerations Regarding the Inclusion of Workers with Disabilities and is open access.

From the abstract

This paper examines the ethical issues of the inclusion of workers with disabilities in the workplace. It takes a cross-fertilization approach between organization studies, the ethics of care, and universal design.

It explores how organizations can use universal design to develop more inclusive workplaces. First by applying universal design principles to workspaces. Second by showing how universal design takes understanding of inclusion from the workspace to the workplace.

The paper discusses the ethical challenges and complexities of applying universal design across diverse organisation and industries. Finally, inclusion requires abandoning any notion of a perfect, productive body. Therefore, we share vulnerability and interdependence in the workplace.

Business and academic research on inclusive workplace cultures typically focus on race and/or gender. Disability and neurodiversity are often overlooked or excluded from this research and resulting policies and practices. A universal design approach is the way to take a holistic look at the issues and solutions for neurodiversity in the workplace. Indeed, these are good workplace practices for everyone. That’s what universal design is about.

A short paper by Preziosa and Hill uses the 7 principles of universal design as a framework for implementing inclusive practices. The authors present the 7 principles in a matrix, and used four principles, briefly outlined below, as an example:

Equitable Use: Avoid the need for people with disability to have separate service or experiences. Eliminate label-based inclusion, such as targeted hiring programs for autistic people. This segregates employees into specific fields and requires them to self-identify any “special” condition they have.

Flexibility in Use: Build in preferences outside the norm such as playback speed options for training videos. Offer to be flexible and acknowledge that individual differences are expected and welcome.

Simple and Intuitive to Use: Avoid unnecessary complexity and repetition of processes, tools, and webpages.

Tolerance for Error: Allow room for mistakes and edits. Ensure digital form, tools and software allow for review and correction.

The authors claim that neurodiverse employees who receive support services show higher retention rates, and most required less than 4 support hours a month. In addition, many benefitted from support with problem solving and organising their work.

Universal design and employment scenarios

The author’s matrix consists of 7 universal design principles and 6 workplace elements. They are: Designing, Hiring, Contracting, Training, Performance Review and Wellbeing. The information is also good for managing groups and teams outside the workplace environment.

The title of the short paper is, What can organizations do to create an environment which successfully supports, engages and retains their neurodiverse employees?

Neurodiversity in the workplace

People with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, anxiety or depression can feel stressed and uncomfortable. Consequently they are less productive. Employers could be missing out by not considering neurodiversity in the workplace. 

As many as one in eight people are neurodiverse according to an article in The Fifth Estate. COVID led to sterile environments. Offices removed their fabric coverings and other soft elements to make cleaning easier. But it makes spaces noisy, clinical and uninviting. 

Even working from home isn’t the answer for everyone. Just because you can work from home doesn’t mean you should. Long hours in a hard chair at the kitchen table isn’t optimum.

The article discusses colour, signage, the size and shape of spaces, textiles and plants. Even games such as Foosball tables have a place.

The solutions are in design of the office, the office culture and inclusive policies. When it comes to neurodiversity we have to ask, what is neurotypical anyway? Workplace designs that consider diversity are good for everyone.

There is more in this article titled, Considering neurodiversity to create better, more productive workplaces. The Fifth Estate also has an ebook for purchase, My (new) Happy Healthy Workplace

Related articles

7 things an autistic person needs in the workplace are:

• No two people are alike
• Ditch the stereotypes
• Ask how we would like to be referred to
• Be open to having a conversation to discuss what works
• Be flexible to customise our working environment
• Help us maximise our strengths
• Provide us with opportunities to progress

Research on designing technology for neurodiverse users reminds us that this ends up being good design for everyone.

The Autism Research Starter Pack has strategies for including people with autism.

Intersectional stigma for autistic people at work found that white autistic people in western countries are more likely to have jobs. But they were more likely to be designed for autistic people. They also found that feeling that someone cares was more important than any adjustments for support. There are other resources available as well.

From Margins to Mainstream: Embracing Neurodiverse Needs for an Inclusive Workplace. The authors review and critique existing literature on communication styles, sensory environments, social expectations, and discrimination. They focus on autism spectrum condition, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia. They apply the neurodiversity framework to challenge traditional notions of workplace ”professionalism” and productivity.

And a book

The Canary Code: A Guide to Neurodiversity, Dignity, and Intersectional Belonging at Work.

“This groundbreaking book combines the lived experience with academic rigor, innovative thought leadership, and lively, accessible writing. To support different types of readers, academic, applied, and lived experience content is clearly identified, helping readers choose their own adventure.”