NGO’s Disability Inclusion Index aims to help Hong Kong firms catch up on hiring front
- CareER founder says local companies currently lag behind multinationals when it comes to hiring those with disabilities, a group facing much higher unemployment rates than overall population
- Funded by Swire Group, the index is also intended to help firms understand better how to reach clients who may face challenges
When Walter Tsui Yu-hang graduated from Chinese University with a degree in economics, he felt good about his chances of landing a job. But it would take more than six months and dozens of interviews before he finally landed a human resources position.
Tsui, who is visually impaired, with only 5 per cent sight, knew his experience was not an isolated one. It ultimately led him to set up CareER in 2013 – a local non-profit organisation dedicated to helping students and graduates with disabilities find jobs.
Over the past eight years, the NGO has helped hundreds of candidates find work, but Tsui says local companies are lagging behind multinationals in the city when it comes to hiring people with disabilities, something he wants to see change.
After obtaining HK$2,400,000 (US$308,000) in funding from the Swire Group in March, the NGO is now developing the city’s first Disability Inclusion Index, an assessment tool aimed at helping companies review what they have done to make their workplaces more inclusive and widening their understanding of how to better reach clients, no matter their physical or mental condition.
The first edition will see at least 25 Hong Kong firms answer questions on topics from recruitment to staff engagement and retention to accessibility and accommodation.
“The first step is to have the index, which will tell the public where Hong Kong stands in terms of inclusion in the workplace” said Tina Chan, head of philanthropy at Swire Group, adding the next step would be to create a strategy for these companies to create a more inclusive workplace.
The index, set to launch later this year, is part of a three-year project aimed at providing training for companies, overall accessibility assessments, and an October recruitment fair that will connect jobseekers with companies.
The index is coming at a crucial time, with Hong Kong’s unemployment rate at 7.2 per cent, the highest in 17 years. About 253,300 city residents are currently out of work, many due to the coronavirus pandemic, which has hit the tourism and retail sectors hard.
Tsui believes the unemployment rate for people with disabilities is more than double that of the general population, a situation that could worsen if nothing changes.
Sometimes it’s not because of discrimination, but because [employers] don’t have the knowledge of how to accommodate people with disabilities
According to government statistics, Hong Kong had 578,600 residents with disabilities in 2013, or 8.1 per cent of the population. Among them, 45.3 per cent were living in poverty, far higher than the 19.9 per cent mark for the overall population.
There were about 136,000 people with disabilities of working age who were economically inactive in 2013, according to the most recently available government figures. Tsui said that was a huge potential workforce for companies to tap into, and one he hopes the index will be able to connect potential jobseekers with companies.
In a 2016 survey, CareER asked 103 employers for their views on hiring people with disabilities. About 80 per cent said they trusted the capabilities of people with disabilities, but under 20 per cent planned to hire them.
Discrimination in the workplace for people with disabilities also continues to be an issue in Hong Kong, according to the NGO.
The number of complaints filed to the Equal Opportunities Commission under the Disability Discrimination Ordinance (DOO) make up the largest share of complaints handled by the body. In 2020, of 551 complaints under the ordinance, 62 per cent related to employment.
The NGO helping Hongkongers with disabilities fight prejudice and break into the workforce
The commission is partnering with the NGO on the upcoming index.
Kitty Lam, head of policy and research and training at the Equal Opportunities Commission, said it remained a challenge to encourage employers to hire a greater number of people with disabilities.
“Sometimes it’s not because of discrimination, but because they don’t have the knowledge of how to accommodate people with disabilities,” she said.
Accessibility is among the chief hurdles for the disabled in finding work.
“What we try to do is give companies suggestions on how to widen a corridor, for example, without the need for major renovations, such as removing partitions or equipment like printers,” said Tsui, referring to creating space for wheelchair users.
Swire’s Chan added that companies are missing a step when job interviewers focus too much on an applicant’s disabilities
“I think it is very important … that when you try to hire someone, if you focus only on what they cannot do, the interview becomes a little bit pointless and skewed,” Chan said.
“The overall objective of this project and of us supporting CareER, is really to narrow the gap … so that people with ability can be on a level playing ground with all the other people who have similar capability in terms of their education and abilities.”
