Investigating employers' attitudes and knowledge about employing someone with a spinal cord injury

PurposeThe aim of this study was to gain an understanding of employers' attitudes to, knowledge about, and policies relating to employing someone with a spinal cord injury (SCI).MethodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with nine employers located in Australia from a range of backgrounds and different sized businesses. The interviews were thematically analysed.ResultsThree themes were identified: Organisational policies (sub-themes: Recruitment - inherent requirements of the role vs risk mitigation; Recruitment strategies and targets; Disclosure; Accommodations needed or offered); Barriers & facilitators (sub-themes: Lack of knowledge about SCI; Physical accessibility; Workplace culture); Personal attitudes (sub-themes: Personal attitudes don't align with organisational policy; Personal experiences informed understanding).ConclusionsOrganisational policies and practices of the employers' organisations, and workplace culture impact the likelihood of someone with a SCI being employed, particularly in relation to recruitment, employment targets, and available accommodations. Individual staff attitudes and knowledge also influence this process. Multi-faceted approaches are needed to increase the employment of people with SCI. Barriers to employing someone with spinal cord injury (SCI) include lack of knowledge about SCI, and lack of knowledge about workplace lawsOrganisational policies and practices of organisations impact the likelihood of someone with an SCI being employedIndividual staff attitudes influence employment of people with SCIEmployers' knowledge about and confidence in employing people with SCI, is an important area to target interventions.