Almost 60% of people with autism afraid to be open about their diagnosis at work

Michael Bolton

Almost six in 10 people within Ireland’s autistic community fear that being open about their diagnosis to an employer would worsen their chances of finding their preferred role.

This is according to new research published on Tuesday by leading hiring platform Irish Jobs and Ireland’s national autism charity AsIAm.

The Autism in the Workplace report, published just ahead of World Autism Day on April 2nd, assesses the attitudes of more than 461 Irish autistic people and businesses of the workplace and employment. The report builds upon the findings made in the first edition of the Autism in the Workplace Report in March 2021.

According to the report, fears around disclosing their diagnosis and worsening their employment chances means that fewer than 20 per cent of autistic people received any supports or reasonable accommodations during the recruitment process for their current role.

About 40 per cent did not make their current employer aware of their diagnosis at all, while just 15 per cent disclosed their diagnosis before or at interview stage.

Some 80 per cent of autistic people also said they would be likely to disclose their autism diagnosis if they were sure the employer or client would be supportive, however, the same percentage do not feel confident that employers, managers, colleagues and clients know enough about autism to support them.

A lack of understanding plays a big part in these issues, with just over a third of businesses believe their staff know enough about autism to support an autistic colleague.