Workforce Diversity-Challenges in Inclusion of People with Disabilities in the Hospitality Industry

The existing literature on diversity, disability and employability points out towards social inequality and highlight the gaps that exist in the hospitality job market for people with disabilities. The nature of tasks and job roles in the hospitality sector has created unrealistic and problematic expectations for people with disabilities. The purpose of this paper is to identify the challenges faced by people with disabilities as far as employment in the Indian hospitality sector is concerned. In-depth interviews with ten managers belonging to ten different five-star hotels were conducted with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire. The responses were analyzed, transcribed, and common themes were identified. One of the significant findings of the study is that most of the hotels consider employing people with disabilities as a corporate social responsibility. Professional and social factors emerged as important challenges in the inclusion of people with disabilities (PWDs) in the Indian hospitality industry.