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Despite statements in the media and elsewhere that business does
not support the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), several recent surveys
challenge that perception. In fact, based on these surveys, there is a great
deal of support for ADA in critical American industries. Following is what has
been learned regarding industries support of ADA and employment of persons with
disabilities.
Global Strategy Group, Inc., Survey-October
1995
The findings of a nationwide random sample of 300 CEOs and human
resource managers in Fortune 5000 companies related to manufacturing,
technology and communications are outlined below.
Key general findings:
- 73% of the top industries across the United States are hiring
people with disabilities.
- 87% of companies with more than 200 employees are hiring people
with disabilities.
- 75% of companies employing 51-200 people are hiring people with
disabilities.
- 58% of companies employing fewer than 50 people are hiring
people with disabilities.
- 54% of the people who make hiring decisions for these companies
say that the ADA has had a positive impact on their corporations.
Key findings by regions of the country:
- 59% of the top industries surveyed in the East found the ADA to
have a positive impact on their corporations.
- 51% of the top industries surveyed in the South found the ADA
to have a positive impact on their companies.
- 47% of top industries surveyed in the Midwest/West found the
ADA to have a positive impact on their industries.
Key findings by industry:
- 66% of executives in the technology industry believe the ADA
has had a positive impact on their corporations.
- 76% of technology-based industries are hiring people with
disabilities.
- 52% of executives in the communications industry believe the
ADA has had a positive impact on their corporations.
- 69% of companies in the communications industry are hiring
people with disabilities.
- 46% of human resource managers in manufacturing companies think
the ADA has made a positive impact on companies across the United States.
- 74% of the companies in the manufacturing industry are hiring
people with disabilities.
Mason-Dixon Poll-January 1995
The results of a poll of 309 randomly selected Florida Chamber of
Commerce members (owners, CEOs, or top managers) with at least 15 full-time
employees is outlined below.
- 94% of executives said their businesses were very or somewhat
familiar with the ADA.
- 38% of the businesses reported hiring at least one person with
a disability over the last three years.
- 72% of businesses that reported hiring persons with
disabilities said that the employment of people with disabilities has had a
favorable effect on their business.
- 87% of businesses that reported hiring persons with
disabilities said that, in view of their experience, they would encourage other
employers to hire persons with disabilities.
(Survey funded by the Florida Chamber of Commerce
Foundation's Disability Awareness Project)
Louis Harris And Associates, Inc.
Survey-July 1995
The findings of a nationwide survey of 404 senior corporate
executives regarding the acceptance of the ADA by America's corporate employers
are outlined below.
- 70% of the executives surveyed support the ADA and do not favor
weakening the law in any way.
- 8% said that the ADA should be strengthened.
- 64% of the companies are hiring people with disabilities.
- 89% of the employers and their employees supported policies to
increase the number of people with disabilities in their companies.
- 75% of managers said they are likely to make greater efforts to
hire people with disabilities in the next three years.
(Survey conducted for The National Organization on
Disability)
University Of Michigan-Dearborn
Study-1994
The findings of a nationwide survey of 408 human resource
management professionals and general managers in companies ranging in size from
15 to 300,000+ employees, with a median number of 843 employees is outlined
below.
- 45% of the human resource managers said hiring people with
disabilities results in productivity gains for their companies.
- 63% of those companies rejected the idea that the costs of the
ADA will adversely affect the ability of their companies to compete.
- 63% of the resource managers said their companies rejected the
idea that the ADA will result in higher costs with few benefits to the firm.
(Study conducted by University of Michigan-Dearborn, School
of Management and School of Education)
July 1996 |
