Checklists help employers conduct accessible interviews and support workplace mental health

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The Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) recently developed two checklists for employers: one to assist in standardizing interview processes in order to ensure equal opportunity for people with disabilities and the other focused on strategies for fostering a mental health-friendly workplace culture.

The first checklist, titled Accessible and Authentic Interviews for Candidates with Disabilities, outlines strategies for standardizing a company’s interview process in order to ensure authenticity, accessibility and equal opportunity for all candidates. The checklist focuses on establishing consistent procedures, educating hiring managers and providing reasonable accommodations to job candidates with disabilities, if requested. It also addresses the need to ensure that online application systems and digital pre-employment testing is accessible to everyone, including people with disabilities.

The second resource, titled the Checklist for Mentally Healthy Workplaces, summarizes strategies that can help employers foster a supportive workplace for all employees, including those with mental health conditions. These strategies align with the “4 A’s of a Mental Health-Friendly Workplace” employer framework, which forms the basis of EARN’s Mental Health Toolkit. The 4 A’s are building “Awareness” and a supportive culture, providing “Accommodations” to employees, offering employee “Assistance” and ensuring “Access” to mental health treatment.

The two checklists are part of a suite of resources offered by EARN to assist employers in welcoming the skills and talents of all qualified individuals with disabilities and helping them succeed once on the job. While the strategies described assist in complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act and other U.S. disability nondiscrimination laws and regulations, they also represent sound management practices that can benefit employees and employers in all countries.

EARN is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy under a cooperative agreement with Cornell University’s Yang-Tan Institute on Employment and Disability. For more information, visit AskEARN.org.