Organizational context and inclusion: Perceptions of managers and people with disabilities

Abstract

The objective of this article was to identify factors in the organizational context that may influence the inclusion of people with disabilities at work. To this end, we conducted three investigations in Brazil. The first study was conducted with 120 managers from 11 organizations and aimed to verify whether actions to adjust both working conditions and work practices affect the perception of managers about the performance of people with disabilities, considering the heterogeneity of disabilities. The second study included 75 people with disabilities and aimed to verify whether job satisfaction with contextual factors, for example, salary, the possibility of skill development, integration, and growth opportunity could explain the affective commitment of these people toward the organizations. The third study, which investigated 169 people with disabilities, included other contextual factors such as social and organizational support to verify if they would affect the meaning these workers assign to their work. The results of Study 1 indicated that types of disabilities are effectively perceived in different ways by the managers and require differentiated actions. From the perspective of the workers with disabilities (Study 2), there is evidence that job satisfaction is related to affective commitment. In addition, it appears that social and organizational support factors (Study 3) are directly related to the perception of fairness, participation, and the reception of these people. Results and theoretical and practical implications will be discussed.