Employment of People with Disabilities in Corporate Social Responsibility Efforts: Large Corporates' Role

This chapter examines how employment issues of people with disabilities (PWDs) are addressed by large corporates through their corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts. In addition to having a role in working toward the growth of the economy, corporates have an important role in addressing problems in the community. To facilitate inclusive workplaces for PWDs, corporates’ support is often required. However, insufficient attention is being paid to corporates’ role in this aspect. In this study, content analysis of CSR relevant reports such as CSR reports, sustainability reports, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reports, and annual reports of the 200 largest corporates in China is conducted. By reviewing these reports, it is found that limited effort has been made by these corporates to support PWDs to gain and maintain employment. The results have implications about corporate behaviors governed by the charity model of disability rather than the social model of disability. The findings suggest that the notion of workplace inclusion should be promoted to corporates in China. A model is further proposed to address the various themes of disability inclusion in workplace, including corporate culture, employers’ HRM practices, and coworkers’ peer support. Concrete CSR initiatives should be developed to support the awareness, accessibility, and acceptance of PWDs in mainstream workplaces.