An estimated 54 million people in the U.S. have disabilities—and that segment of the population represents a tremendous – if underutilized -- workforce asset. Only 32 percent of working-age Americans with disabilities are employed although fully two-thirds of those who are jobless want to be part of the workforce.

The National Organization on Disabilities (NOD) also notes that the disability community represents nearly one-fifth of the U.S. population and an untapped market worth more than $220 billion in spending power. With those kinds of numbers, it seems corporate America would actively seek out the disability community. But, unfortunately, that’s still a relatively rare scenario.

There are, however, some companies that “get it.” Companies that are smart enough to recognize the value, work ethic, capability, and commitment that most employees with disabilities bring to the office. Companies that are also smart enough to recognize the enterprise-wide and bottom-line benefits of creating a workplace conducive to recruiting people with disabilities.

When Diversity, Inc. put together their end-of-year 2007 list of the top companies for people with disabilities, they looked at the following key points:

  • Does the company have employee resource groups for people with disabilities?
  • Does it have active recruitment programs for people with disabilities?
  • Does the company website feature images of people with disabilities?
  • Does the company have alternative career tracks for parents or others with long-term family-care issues?
  • Does the company have a substantial number of managers participating in mentoring programs? (Among the top 10 companies, an average of 49 percent of managers participated in such programs)

Based on these criteria, the following companies were deemed stellar performers, and the kind of organization we hope others will soon be emulating:

  • Deloitte & Touche
  • Eastman Kodak
  • Ernst & Young
  • JPMorgan Chase
  • Marriott International
  • Merrill Lynch
  • PricewaterhouseCoopers
  • Proctor & Gamble
  • SC Johnson
  • Wachovia

If you have a disability and are looking for a place to start a job search, this list could literally be the key to your future. And even if you don’t have a disability, it makes good sense to find ways to support these companies and the products/services they provide. They deserve to thrive financially for doing what all companies should be doing – actively engaging the whole community. It’s just good business sense.