woman in wheelchair with office colleagues in background The ADA is seen as a turning point for disabled people in the US, yet workplace discrimination still exists, driving initiatives and policy ideas to make the workplace fairer to all workers. (Photo: Shutterstock)

After a year where diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) became a hot topic in the workplace, advocates for workers with disabilities express cautious optimism about the nation's movement toward a more-inclusive workplace. There has been progress, they say, but disabled workers—many of whom have no outward sign of disability—can still feel overlooked or undervalued by the companies they work for.

Part of the problem, advocates say, is that "disability" covers such a wide range of conditions, many of them not apparent to people who may be co-workers or managers. And workers who start a career free of disabilities may acquire one or more as they grow older.

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