Why LinkedIn’s Job Postings are Useless for Disabled People

I had originally begun a simple text document for which to copy/paste snippets of text in job postings that LinkedIn had specifically recommended for me, snippets that proved I was actually not able to apply for the jobs because of how ableism was built into the job descriptions. It was going to be a quick little LinkedIn post, an instructive post for What Not to Do when posting jobs there.

It grew. So here is the text of the post I’d intended to publish only on LinkedIn.

As a disabled person, most of the LinkedIn notifications I get for jobs I have the skills for are useless to me.

Here is some of the language job postings use in order to discriminate against disabled people from even applying, taken from actual job postings LinkedIn suggested for me:

• work closely with a fast-paced, high-performing team (many disabled people are unable to work at a “fast pace”)
• excellent communication skills (as judged by neurotypical standards, ignoring the excellent but different-looking communication skills neurodivergent people have)
• move with speed and agility in everything we do (another way to exclude people with mobility problems)
• innovate and adapt so we can move as fast as the world around us (see above)
• maintain a friendly and positive attitude (again, according to whom? people with depression or other mental health issues can be friendly in a customer-facing role but have issues with toxic positivity)
• regular, predictable, full attendance is an essential function of this job (disabled people cannot guarantee full attendance, not just because of the unpredictability of our bad days/sick days, but because we have to maintain a regular schedule of medical appointments)
• lifting objects up to 50 pounds (unless the job involves lifting as a PRIMARY job duty, this clause is used to weed out disabled people and older people who have lost strength due to age)
• this journalist by trade will be an editing savant (the term “savant” is ableist in and of itself, and this particular job posting used it multiple times; even though I could be “accurately” described as an editing savant, I find this offensive as an autistic person, so I would not apply, even if I was a “journalist by trade,” which I am not)
• strong verbal communication skills, including experience with managing a team (also assumes neurotypical standards of communication without the possibility of accommodation for nonspeakers or partial nonspeakers who can communicate effectively via email and messaging, which is how I’ve managed my team of writers since 2009, and how I communicate with my clients in a solely text-based manner)
• time-management skills (people with executive dysfunction need accommodations for time management, which should be provided as a reasonable accommodation by the prospective employer)
• 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (unless the job duties require a physical presence — including Zoom meetings — at a certain time, which this job does not, as it’s a remote position for a 24-hour business, this discriminates against people with varying circadian rhythms as well as people who can only work for shorter lengths of time but can spread 8 hours of work throughout the day)
• a positive, team-first attitude and a sense of humor (this sounds acceptable unless you already understand that “sense of humor” is often used to deflect criticism of bigotry and other forms of discrimination)
• high-impact jobs for charismatic leaders who are comfortable in front of an audience (this requires adherence to neurotypical standards)

I could have gone on and collected even more examples, but I was growing tired from the mental and emotional energy it took to sift through my “personalized job recommendations” and see how they all precluded me from applying, regardless of their EOE claims that they don’t discriminate based on disability. The discrimination is baked into the corporate culture that creates these job descriptions.

Note: The posting I stopped on was actually a good one that I didn’t find any flaws to list. I shifted my energy to looking into how to apply. The employer is pretty much exactly what I was hoping for, as I would not be an employee but a freelancer who could take as much or as little work as I want without prejudice. While this works especially well for creatives like me, it could also work well as a model for other job titles and industries where the work is done remotely.

Companies that post job listings, do better. There are so many agencies that can help connect you with disabled people who can perform the actual job duties you need, perhaps better than non-disabled candidates, when you remove the ableist expectations.

I am, of course, available to perform sensitivity reading for job postings, as well as other textual material. My rates are scalable, so when reaching out to me for this service, offer me an amount that is comparable to what you pay for listing the position on a service or the commission/bounty/referral fee you offer for the successful placement of a referred job candidate — whichever is higher.