Employers urged to tackle autism barriers

The government is urging employers to break down barriers hampering autistic people in the workplace and preventing neurodiverse employees getting the support they need.

A report from the Department of Work and Pensions lays out 19 recommendations to help autistic staff and jobseekers, including training on how to encourage career progression, tailored advice for careers advisers and guidance on how IT systems and the physical environment can meet autistic workers’ needs.

Around one in 70 people in the UK is autistic, according to the National Autistic Society, but only 30% are in work, compared with half of all disabled people and 80% of non-disabled people of working age.

The report notes that autistic graduates are twice as likely to be unemployed after 15 months as non-disabled graduates, autistic workers are twice as likely to be over-qualified for their job, and autistic people face the largest pay gap of all disability employees.

Recent research from the CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development) found that more than half of neurodivergent workers don’t feel supported by their organisation, a fifth have experienced harassment or discrimination and nearly a third hide their neurodivergence due to worries about stereotyping and lack of support.