What Does Business Really Think About The ADA?

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.

(Survey conducted for President's Committee on Employment of 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)