This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Employers must do more to remove the barriers preventing women with disability from progressing into leadership, according to a new report from People with Disability Australia (PWDA), the national disability rights and advocacy organization. Researchers identify six lessons to help drive change.
The findings come from PWDA's Advancing Women with Disability in the Workplace project, which worked with women with disability and employers over three years to strengthen leadership opportunities and build more accessible and inclusive workplaces. The national project, which ran from January 2023 to July 2026, reached 107 women with disability, including 46 mentors and 46 mentees, and engaged organizations across nine industries and sectors. Before participating, 82% of surveyed participants reported experiencing barriers to leadership opportunities, while more than 60% reported low confidence in progressing into leadership roles.
These barriers included inaccessible workplace practices, discrimination, limited opportunities for career development and workplace cultures that fail to recognize the skills and leadership potential of women with disability. Through mentoring, disability-led education and professional networking, participants reported greater confidence in their leadership abilities, stronger professional connections and clearer career goals. Mentoring proved particularly valuable, with 71% of post-program survey respondents identifying it as the most valuable part of their experience.
However, the report found that individual leadership development alone cannot overcome the structural and organizational barriers women with disability across Australia continue to face. Drawing on three years of learning, the report identifies six recommendations to strengthen future programs and support lasting change: PWDA's Advancing Women with Disability in the Workplace project manager, Summah McKinnon, stated the findings reinforced the need for employers to recognize the leadership potential of women with disability and address the barriers preventing them from progressing. "Women with disability have the skills, experience and ambition to lead, but too often we're expected to navigate workplaces and systems that weren't designed with us in mind.
"This project has shown what happens when women with disability are given the opportunity to build connections, develop their leadership and be recognized for what they bring. But employers also need to do their part to make those opportunities possible," McKinnon said. McKinnon, who is herself a woman with disability, said the project had reinforced the importance of creating workplaces where women with disability could progress without having to compromise their well-being or hide their support needs.
"We need workplaces where women with disability are trusted, supported and given the same opportunities to lead as anyone else. "Through this project, we've built a powerful network of women who are supporting one another, sharing knowledge and creating opportunities for the next generation of leaders," she said. Michelle Hyde, co-author of the final report, said the findings showed that improving leadership opportunities for women with disability required more than individual professional development.
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