Tony Bough CFIOSH
Head of Health Safety and Wellbeing, RSA Assurance
Stuart Hughes
President, IOSH
According to a white paper, around 15–20% of the global population are neurodivergent, yet few feel safe disclosing their condition at work or receive adequate support despite being protected by equality laws.
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) urges employers to foster inclusive cultures where neurodiverse employees can freely discuss their needs. This call follows their ‘Divergent Thinking’ white paper launched earlier this year, with survey findings showing that people felt apprehensive speaking about neurodiversity at work.
Proactive culture for neurodiversity
Employers need to be more proactive in fostering positive organisational cultures that encourage neurodivergent staff to open up about conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Drawing on material from a series of expert webinars broadcast by IOSH last year, Divergent Thinking identifies ‘fundamental building blocks’ that will enable neurodiversity to be accommodated and recognised for the value it can add.
The white paper emphasises that fostering a positive organisational culture where diverse employees thrive requires more than policies, training and individual adjustments; though these are important foundations.
Our report highlights the importance of
businesses encouraging positive cultures
where people can openly discuss their needs.
Personalised neurodiversity support measures
“If you’ve met one neurodivergent person, then you’ve met one neurodivergent person,” says Tony Bough CFIOSH, Head of Health Safety and Wellbeing at RSA Assurance. “Where we often go wrong with reasonable adjustments is we don’t ask the person, we dive into research.”
Organisations must also think of ways to show all employees their commitment, including:
- Leaders openly discussing their own experiences of neurodiversity
- Providing training for line managers to help them recognise and control unconscious bias and assumptions about individual capacity or behaviours
- Encouraging the setting up of neurodiverse groups or networks
- Ensuring there is a neurodiversity section in diversity and inclusion policies
The white paper also makes an important point about neurodivergent conditions and how they are much less commonly diagnosed in some sections of the population, including women and ethnic minority groups, than others.
Fostering positive work cultures
Stuart Hughes, IOSH President, says: “Our report highlights the importance of businesses encouraging positive cultures where people can openly discuss their needs.
“The Equality Act 2010 made it a legal duty for employers to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate workers’ needs around neurodiversity and other conditions. But it isn’t just a matter of staying within the law; businesses can really benefit from having positive cultures where people thrive at work.
“So, our call to businesses is to ask themselves if they are doing all they can because there are significant benefits to a diverse workforce where everyone is comfortable being themselves.”
