Exploring the working conditions of disabled employees: a scoping review

Purpose: Disabled people are often overlooked in considerations about work design, which contributes to their exclusion from the labor market. This issue also reflects within research, as the body of knowledge on the working conditions of disabled employees remains relatively limited.

Methods: A scoping review was conducted to assess the research landscape concerning the working conditions of disabled employees. Five databases have been searched, focusing on relevant studies published between 2017 and 2022.

Results: One hundred fourteen studies were included in the review. It was found that social aspects of work appeared within a substantial portion of the examined studies. Furthermore, it became evident that the interplay of accessibility and flexibility provides an important dynamic to make work design both inclusive and feasible.

Conclusion: The recurrent prominence of social aspects, accessibility, and flexibility across the studies shows common challenges and potentials within the work situation of disabled employees. This suggests avenues for future research and inclusive work design.

This article is published in the "Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology" (2024).

Bibliographic information

Title:  Exploring the working conditions of disabled employees: a scoping review. 

Written by:  S. Teborg, L. Hünefeld, T. S. Gerdes

in: Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology, 2024.  pages: 1-18, Project number: F 2540, DOI: 10.1186/s12995-023-00397-z

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Further Information

Research Project

Project numberF 2540 StatusOngoing Project Quality of participation in working life - Measuring, describing and designing the work situation of people with disabilities

To the Project

Research ongoing