Autism Acceptance Month | America has an autism employment crisis. What can HR do?

It is estimated that over five million adults in the US have autism spectrum disorder—the fastest-growing disability in the country.

The figure comes from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study published in 2017, commissioned to “fill a gap” in data on adults living with ASD in the United States.

Eight years on, further authoritative figures are few and far between. Even less data about the number of autistic employees in the US workforce is available. It is widely reported that 85% of US adults with autism are unemployed, but the accuracy of this figure somewhat shaky.

It is perhaps more pertinent to say that there is evidently a dearth of meaningful research or investment into understanding the specific barriers currently facing autistic adults in the US.