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Modifications and accommodations required by people with disability are often far less significant than employers expect, and the majority of requests are "very minor", an inclusion advocate says.

Most organisations say they want to employ more individuals with disability, but only a minority do, and the fact the unemployment rate for people with disability is nearly double the national average shows barriers remain, Randstad client and talent director Kerry McQuillan tells HR Daily.

Further, those who are employed often aren't working to their capacity because employers are "looking at the disability, not the skillset", which means candidates end up taking lower-skilled, lower-paying jobs "just to get their foot in the door", McQuillan says.

A persistent barrier is employers not knowing what individuals with disability need, or how to find out, which means assumptions that don't reflect reality remain unchallenged...