Summary: Breaking Down Barriers – Improving the Workplace Experience for Neurodivergent Canadians (2023)

Reference: Breaking Down Barriers – Improving the Workplace Experience for Neurodivergent Canadians (2023). Feel free to download here

Despite strong evidence that neurodivergent employees contribute innovation, diverse thinking, and high-value skills, they remain significantly under-employed in Canada. The report finds that the single biggest barrier is a lack of awareness and understanding of neurodiversity, which fuels stigma, bias, and exclusion throughout hiring, management, and workplace culture breaking-down-barriers_2023.

Key barriers identified

Neurodivergent workers commonly experience:

• Bias and misunderstanding, especially around eye contact, communication style, and social norms

• Rigid hiring processes that prioritize personality fit and behavioural interviews over skills

• Difficult or inaccessible accommodation systems, often requiring costly or delayed formal diagnoses

• Unclear or ambiguous workplace communication, which disproportionately impacts neurodivergent employees

• Pressure to mask natural behaviours to conform to workplace norms, leading to burnout

• Fear of disclosure, with many workers believing disclosure could harm their career prospects breaking-down-barriers_2023

  
  

What works: effective inclusion practices

The research highlights five evidence-based practices that consistently improve outcomes:

1. Company-wide neurodiversity awareness training: Training should be ongoing, practical, and delivered by people with lived or professional expertise. i.e. i.e. A few interview participants highlighted the fear of disclosure as a significant barrier in the workplace. Additionally, half of neurodivergent employees we surveyed felt that informing their employers about their neurodiversity status might limit their opportunities for career progression or have other negative repercussions, such as being viewed differently in the workplace.

2. Alternative hiring processes: Examples include providing interview questions in advance, offering different interview formats, avoiding abstract questions, and focusing on skills rather than “culture fit.”

3. Flexible, accessible accommodations: Successful organizations allow self-identified neurodivergent employees to access supports without requiring formal diagnoses and normalize accommodations for everyone.

4. Clear communication: Interview participants suggested that workplace communication should be clear, direct, and free of ambiguity, sarcasm, and colloquialisms. When managers provide vague or inconsistent feedback and aren’t clear about their expectations, neurodivergent workers find it particularly challenging to determine what they’re expected to do. For example, many neurodivergent individuals tend to be literal and can sometimes misunderstand others’ intentions. According to those we spoke with, common workplace phrases— such as take the bull by the horns, go by the book, my hands are tied, and learn the ropes—should be avoided. Interview participants suggested that managers and co-workers of neurodivergent workers should instead try to communicate as plainly as possible by simply saying what they really mean. And, while honesty in the workplace is a valuable trait, many neurodivergent individuals tend to be starkly honest and up front. Their feedback can sometimes be perceived as negative, rude, or hurtful to others. The solution isn’t for neurodivergent workers to be less truthful but for neurotypical workers and managers to better understand neurodivergent communication styles and appreciate how these differences can be an asset to the team. For instance, more direct and honest communication in the workplace can help teams to avoid miscommunications and to complete projects more efficiently.

5. People-first management: Compassionate, trust-based leadership improves disclosure, wellbeing, performance, and retention across all employees—not only neurodivergent staff. I.e. Neurodivergent workers can also have different communication styles than their neurotypical colleagues, which can contribute to miscommunications and misunderstandings at work.

6. Community and belonging through ERGs: Neurodivergent employee resource groups reduce isolation, increase engagement, and inform better organizational policies breaking-down-barriers_2023. i.e. Given the limited understanding and acceptance of neurodiversity in the workplace, neurodivergent individuals may choose to continue to mask, rather than being up front with their employer about their need for support, for fear of negative repercussions.

Employer benefits

Importantly, those we interviewed suggested that neurodiversity awareness training should be delivered by those with experience, either lived or professional. Partnering with experts to raise more awareness and understanding for neurodiversity in the workplace is a critical first step in breaking down the many barriers that neurodivergent workers face.

Employers who have implemented neurodiversity inclusion initiatives report:

• Stronger culture and morale

• Better communication and leadership capability

• Higher retention and loyalty

• Access to overlooked, high-quality talent

• Increased innovation through diverse perspectives

Notably, most employers describe these initiatives as easy, inexpensive, and high-impact breaking-down-barriers_2023.

Bottom line

Neurodivergent exclusion is not a talent problem—it is a design problem. When workplaces are redesigned to support the most sensitive nervous systems, they become healthier, more productive, and more sustainable for everyone.