Diversity and Inclusion in the American Legal Profession: Workplace Accommodations for Lawyers with Disabilities and Lawyers Who Identify as LGBTQ+

Abstract

Workplace accommodations, vital for employees with disabilities, promote diversity and inclusion efforts in organizations. This article examines who requests accommodations and who is more likely to have requests granted. We investigate the roles of individual characteristics and their intersection, including disability, sexual orientation, gender, race/ethnicity, and age. Methods: Using data from a national survey of U.S. lawyers, we estimate the odds of requesting accommodations and having the requests approved. We also estimate differences in odds according to individual characteristics, adjusting for control variables. Results: Personal identity factors, such as disability status, gender, and age, predict requests for accommodations. Odds of requesting accommodations were higher for women and people with disabilities as compared to men and those without disabilities, but lower for older individuals. Odds of requesting accommodations were higher for an older population segment-older lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) lawyers-than for younger lawyers. Accommodations were granted differentially to individuals with multiple marginalized identities. Counter to predictions, being a person with a disability is negatively associated with having an accommodation granted. Older lawyers generally have higher odds of having accommodations granted, but odds for groups such as women and racial/ethnic minorities decline with age. LGBQ lawyers who are racial minorities have lower odds than White LGBQ lawyers of having their accommodations granted. Longer tenure increases the odds of requesting accommodations. Working for a private organization decreases the odds; working for a large organization generally increases the odds. Conclusions: Those most needing accommodations, such as lawyers with disabilities and women, are more likely to request accommodations. Disabled lawyers, older women lawyers, older racial/ethnic minority lawyers, and LGBQ minority lawyers have relatively low odds of having requests granted. The results highlight the need to consider intersectional identities in the accommodation process.

Disability-inclusive employment, cancer survivorship, and the Americans with Disabilities Act

“…The pandemic is challenging public and private entities in unprecedented ways, and it has spurred traditional and new forms of employment and economic opportunity. But people with disabilities are currently experiencing among the highest rates of job loss, as compared to those without disabilities, from the pandemic emergency [ 48 , 49 ].…”

Human Research Management: Effect of Covid-19 On Workers in the UK Who Have Previously Lost One or Both Arms

“…While some people with impairments face restrictions that make finding a job difficult, many others encounter other obstacles. Employers are less likely to exhibit interest in job applications from people with disabilities, even when their resumes are identical to candidates without disabilities and the disabilities are unrelated to work performance, according to employer audit studies carried out by us and others (Blanck et al, 2020).…”

“…However, the higher employment losses of workers with disabilities in the 2020 COVID recession essentially undid this relative gain. From February to July 2020, overall employment for individuals with impairments fell by 11.2%, compared to 6.7% for people without disabilities (Blanck et al, 2020).…”

“…When comparing salary freezes and cuts in March, April, and May 2020 to the same months in 2019, one study indicates that wage freezes and cuts were significantly more prevalent in 2020 than in 2019. In Canada, real pay growth accelerated to 6.8% in April 2020, reflecting more job losses for low-wage employees after a significant increase in unemployment from 8% in March to 13.4% in April (Blanck et al, 2020).…”

“…More so, the average monthly wages were much lower than before the pandemic, and this could have been the primary cause of reduced productivity among these workers. The literature established that many disabled people would benefit from working from home, and the UK has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to improve their working lives (Blanck et al, 2020;UKaid, 2020). Employers and the economy would gain from greater productivity and lower illness rates as a result of this.…”