Disability & Society

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Prospects for employment of persons with

disabilities in the post-covid-19 era in developing
countries

Floyd Morris

To cite this article: Floyd Morris (2021): Prospects for employment of persons with
disabilities in the post-covid-19 era in developing countries, Disability & Society, DOI:
10.1080/09687599.2021.1932757

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2021.1932757

Published online: 08 Jun 2021.

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Disability & Society
https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2021.1932757

Prospects for employment of persons with

disabilities in the post-covid-19 era in developing
countries
Floyd Morris
Centre for Disability Studies, University of the West Indies Mona, Kingston, Jamaica

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

The global environment has been hit with a pandemic of Received 30 June 2020
cataclysmic proportion. The COVID19 has created havoc on Accepted 16 May 2021
all countries and has claimed the lives of over 3 million
individuals and affected over 100 million persons at the time KEYWORDS
of writing this paper. Countries have been forced to imple- persons with disabilities;
ment measures to safeguard their population. Included in COVID-19; remote
these measures is work from home strategies. The crisis, employment; business
whilst catastrophic in nature; has created some opportunities process outsourcing;
developing countries
for groups such as persons with disabilities through remote
employment. The author examines through a case study,
the prospects for employment of persons with disabilities
using the concept of remote employment. The Business
Process Outsourcing sector is the focus of study. The fun-
damental question to answer in the study is to what extent
can the Business Process Outsourcing sector employ more
persons with disabilities in the Post-COVID19 era? The article
is completed with some recommendations.

Points of interest
• The COVID-19 pandemic presents challenges and opportunities for
persons with disabilities.
• This article is about the possibilities of working from home by persons
with disabilities in the after COVID-19 environment through the use
of new technologies.
• The article is prepared by looking at a fast growing employment sec-
tor which showed that there is a big growth in working from home
and that the chances are great for the employment of persons with
disabilities through this means, with the aid of new technologies.
• Most of the public facilities across poor and middle-income countries
are unfriendly to persons with disabilities and making some of these

CONTACT Floyd Morris morrisfloyd@gmail.com

© 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
2 F. MORRIS

individuals work from their homes is a very good means of employing

some of them in the labour market.
• This research is therefore important in showing how poor and
middle-income countries can add to the employment of persons with
disabilities by working from home with the use of new technolo-
gies and some recommendations are made on how to achieve this
objective.

Introduction
The global pandemic brought about by COVID-19 has created havoc on
countries across the world (World Health Organization 2020). It has contrib-
uted to the death of hundreds of thousands of individuals and directly
affected millions of persons across the world. Countries have been forced
to implement measures to safeguard their citizens. Included in these mea-
sures are strategies to keep the productive wheels turning through varied
initiatives, including working from home (Friesen 2020).
Companies have been utilizing these measures to ensure that production
and productivity takes place. Importantly, modern technologies have been
heavily leveraged by companies to ensure that their employees keep pro-
duction going in their organizations (Morgan 2020).
Employees have been provided with technological devices to keep produc-
tion up and running. In Jamaica for example, one sector that has been a
considerable employer of individuals is the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO).
According to (Krstic and Kahrovic, 2015, p. 32): ‘It is an arrangement in which
one organization provides services to another organization that could also be
or usually have been provided in-house.’ There are several advantages to this
business model. Krstic and Kahrovic (2015, p. 32) posit: ‘More and more large
and small companies are turning to outsourcing as a grow method or strategy
with the aim of controlling of overhead costs, restraining payroll and better
access to outside knowledge. Outsourcing can provide companies to use
resources efficiently and effectively by using the industry best practices and
improve their business processes, enter or create new markets. Business process
outsourcing secured from external providers, bring enterprises (which use this
strategy) extensive world-class competencies.’
BPOs currently employ over 40,000 individuals in Jamaica (Johnson 2020).
During the period of the pandemic in Jamaica, some 13,000 of these individuals
were working from home. This is a clear indication of the prospects of employ-
ment of individuals working from home and using modern technologies.
The experience of the work from home in the COVID-19 environment is
vindication of years of advocacy from persons with disabilities, for some of
those individuals in the community who have accessibility challenges, to
work from home (Cirruzzo 2020). Modern technologies have improved expo-
nentially (Lafayette 2018) and this has capacitated persons with disabilities
 Disability & Society 3

to participate in the labour market. Remote work therefore seems to be a

viable option for employment for persons with disabilities in developing
countries (Muniz 2018). This method of providing employment for persons
with disabilities, must however, not be construed as a means of eliminating
the responsibilities of companies and governmental organizations, to make
their facilities accessible for these individuals.
In this paper, the author examines the prospects for employment of
persons with disabilities in the Post-COVID-19 era in developing countries.
Access to employment is a quintessential problem for persons with dis-
abilities in developing countries (United Nations 2018; World Health
Organization 2011). The specific question to be answered is to what extent
can the BPO sector employ more persons with disabilities in the Post-COVID
era in developing countries? Through a case study, focus is placed on the
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector since it is one of the largest
and fastest growing employment areas in developing countries (Digneo
2020). The assessment in this paper is concluded with some recommen-
dations for action.

Developing countries
The term ‘developing countries’ is germane to this article and because of
such, it is imperative for readers to understand what it means. According
to the United Nations Statistical Yearbook (2001, p. 3), there is no ‘common
agreement in the United Nations system concerning the terms “developed”
and “developing,” when referring to the stage of development reached by
any given country or area and its corresponding classification in one or the
other grouping.’ What has happened however; is that the Yearbook has
divided the world into two distinct classifications. These includes countries
that are regarded as ‘developed’ that comprise North America, Europe, the
former USSR, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. All other countries are
regarded as ‘developing’ (United Nations 2001). But in its annual global
economic survey, the said United Nations uses a somewhat different system.
It dissects the former USSR and previous communist countries of Eastern
Europe into a third category called ‘economies in transition’ (United Nations
1999). The World Report on Persons with Disabilities (2011) adumbrates that
there are over one billion persons with disabilities living in the world and
approximately 80% of these individuals reside in developing countries (World
Health Organization 2011).

Remote employment
Remote employment or telecommuting is a job done away from a main
office at a remote location (Allen, Golden, and Shockley 2015). This could
be work done from home or work done on the road in a motor vehicle.
4 F. MORRIS

Individuals are not confined to a centralized managed business operation

on a daily basis.
Increasingly, companies have been using remote employment or telecom-
muting as a means of generating jobs for individuals in diverse geographical
locations (Greenbaum 2019). This has become necessary as companies seek
to reduce overhead expenditure and to introduce flexibility at the workplace
(Wong 2020). Additionally, as cities become congested across the world,
some companies have been exploring the option of allowing some workers
to work from home in order to assist with easing congestion (Hopkins 2019).
In the United States of America and prior to the arrival of COVID-19, data
suggest that there were approximately 7 million or 3.4% of the population
engaged in remote employment (Wong 2020). These data on remote work
and the experience during the COVID-19 environment suggest that this
phenomenon will be a strong feature of the labour market in the
Post-COVID-19 era. What is interesting is that both employers and employees
seem to be enjoying this burgeoning situation. In a Future of Work survey
of company managers, 78% of the respondents listed “flexible schedules and
telecommuting” as their most effective non-monetary ways to increase
employee retention. Simultaneously, 83% of employees indicated that the
ability to work remotely at least some of the time would act as the clincher,
if they were deciding between two similar job offers and 32% indicated that
having a choice of work location would matter more to them than being
given a more prestigious role within their company (Alper-Leroux 2019).
Since the 1990s, the world has seen an exponential growth in modern
technologies. At the core of this is the burgeoning of computer devices and
telecommunications equipment that has revolutionized how individuals and
companies operate on a daily basis (Blumler and Kavanagh 1999). Within
real time, for example, an individual or company in Japan can engage in
diverse transactions with another person or company in Europe or any other
part of the world. All of this has been made possible through the advent
of the Internet which has served to collapse the world in a global village
(Giddens 1991). Data is showing over 4.5 billion individuals or 59% of the
global population using the Internet as of April 2020 (Clement 2020). China,
India and the United States are the global leaders in terms of Internet usage.
However, Northern Europe leads the world with a 95% Internet penetration
(Clement 2020). It is this new paradigm of computerization and Internet
usage that has enhanced the prospects for remote work or telecommuting
(Allen, Golden, and Shockley 2015).
Intrinsic to the process of remote work or telecommuting is the wave of
economic liberalization that took place in developing countries in the 1990s
(Blumler and Kavanagh 1999). This neo-liberal process saw a multiplicity of
companies that were publicly owned being privatized and more competition
taking place in the market. One sector to have benefited from this process
 Disability & Society 5

of economic liberalization was telecommunications (Morris 2020). A myriad

of countries in the developing world that were once involved in State own-
ership of telecommunications or had the presence of a monopoly company
was forced to liberalize the industry and open the sector to competition.
This saw a wave of telecommunications companies coming to the forefront.
It was during this era for example, that developing countries saw the intro-
duction of global telecommunications giant Digicel (Morris 2020).
With the expansion of the telecommunications sector, came cellular
phones and the Internet. There was also a significant improvement in tele-
communications service to citizens. This is evidenced by the increase in
teledensity in developing countries (Digneo 2020). For example, in Jamaica,
there was a considerable improvement in terms of citizen’s access to cellular
service (Dunn 2012; Morris 2019) and over 90% of citizens accessing cellular
phones (Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) 2013).
In the tremendous growth of modern technologies in the telecommuni-
cations industry over the past 30 years have come equipment and devices
to integrate groups such as persons with disabilities (Lafayette 2018). It has
triggered what this author regards as ‘glabilitization.’ ‘Glabilitization’ is the
process by which globalization through the introduction of modern tech-
nologies have been significantly enhancing the abilities of persons with
disabilities and facilitating their inclusion in mainstream society. The word
is a conflation of globalization and disability. Global corporations have been
engaged in mass production of equipment and devices that caters to the
needs of persons with disabilities and non-disabled individuals at the same
time and this is known as universal design.
The issue of universal design has become a dominant feature of modern
technologies especially since the adoption of the Convention on the Rights
of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2006 (United Nations 2006). Universal
design is where equipment and devices are built in such a way that both
persons with disabilities and non-disabled individuals can use these tech-
nologies. Apple for example; has developed a plethora of equipment and
devices that can be used by both persons with disabilities and non-disabled
individuals at the same time (Lafayette 2018). All that is required is for the
accessibility feature on the device to be activated and it becomes user
friendly for the person with disability.
But, whilst economic liberalization has brought about significant oppor-
tunities for persons with disabilities through modern technologies, it is
yet to stimulate greater employment of persons with disabilities in devel-
oping countries. Entrepreneurs, in a free market economy are in the busi-
ness of making money. They are therefore going to employ individuals
who they believe can offer greater returns on their investments.
Unfortunately, persons with disabilities are not perceived as productive
individuals and as such, they are isolated from the labour market
6 F. MORRIS

(Hiranandani and Sonpal, 2010). The process of economic liberalization

has also forced governments in developing countries to withdraw from
critical sectors such as education, health care, employment and transpor-
tation and this withdrawal, according to Hiranandani and Sonpal, 2010
has contributed to the widening of inequality and persons with disabilities
have been negatively affected. For example, in the area of employment,
developing countries continue to experience a preeminent challenge with
the exclusion of persons with disabilities from the labour market (United
Nations 2018).
Governments in developing countries have been putting in place varied
strategies to include persons with disabilities in the labour market. Included
in these strategies is the quota system that requires companies and orga-
nizations to have a percentage of jobs reserved for persons with disabilities.
But, such a strategy has come up for considerable criticism by some scholars.
Waddington (1996) postulates that this approach that was dominantly used
in Europe in the post-World War I and II has not generated significant
employment for persons with disabilities. Instead, Waddington suggested
that the approach used by countries in gender discrimination should be
adopted to deal with the problem.
This author however, takes a different view from that of Waddington.
Because, developing countries are at a different level of implementation
of the disability agenda than that of developed countries. Developing
countries for example; have just started to put in place legislation to
protect persons with disabilities and to tackle the negative stigmata
associated with members of this marginalized community (United Nations
2018). Education institutions, health care systems, public transportation
systems, employment mechanisms among others are still inaccessible
to persons with disabilities in developing countries (United Nations
2018). All of these attitudes have been enmeshed in a culture of ‘dis-
ability infodemics’ wherein false information and half-truths have been
articulated about persons with disabilities. Developing countries there-
fore have to implement all legitimate strategies to correct these false
information relating to persons with disabilities in order to generate
significant employment of these individuals. Article 27, 1(h) of the CRPD
supports the utilization of a quota system as it states: “Promote the
employment of persons with disabilities in the private sector through
appropriate policies and measures, which may include affirmative action
programmes, incentives and other measures (United Nations 2006). Thus,
employment quota, this author believes is still a valid strategy to pursue
in developing countries.
Employment quotas and gender mainstreaming policies are not mutu-
ally exclusive. Conflatedly, they can work to stimulate high levels of
 Disability & Society 7

employment in developing countries for members of this community.

Furthermore, the chronic nature of the employment problem in devel-
oping countries for persons with disabilities, requires multiple efforts to
ensure that these individuals are included in the labour market, with due
regards to the decent work agenda (International Labour Organization
(ILO) 2015; Ministry of Labour and Social Security, 2014).
Notwithstanding the problems of employment for persons with disabilities,
the transformation in the telecommunications sector has brought with it
tremendous employment opportunities. One such prospect is that of remote
employment or telecommuting. With more citizens having access to the
Internet and computers, an environment is thus established for a ‘virtual
office’ and this gives rise to jobs for citizens in remote geographical locations
and persons with disabilities should benefit.
Remote employment or telecommuting can take place with any job.
However, the trend is quite conspicuous in distinct sectors. Knowledge
workers such as computer programmers who can do the bulk of their
work on a laptop are great prospects for remote work or telecommuting.
Similarly, individuals working in call centres or conducting insurance
claims adjustments are great prospects for this type of work
(Greenbaum 2019).
In the COVID-19 environment, governments and companies across the
world were forced to resort to remote work (Morgan 2020). Measures were
put in place for employees to work from home as ‘stay at home’ orders were
issued by governments as a public health safety precaution. Employers
required of employees to do their work at home and post the assignments
to their central work locations. This has been the dominant mode of work
during the COVID-19 pandemic.
For years, some persons with disabilities have been advocating for remote
work to be used as one of the means of generating employment for some
persons with disabilities (Cirruzzo 2020). This is to deal with some of the
accessibility challenges at the workplace. The lobby from persons with dis-
abilities to have this mode of employment has been met with limited success.
Employers have proffered all manner of spurious excuses as to why it cannot
work. However, the COVID-19 environment has shown that this is an issue
that is real and possible for persons with disabilities (Cirruzzo 2020). One
sector that it is most practical and possible is that of the Business Process
Outsourcing (BPO).
But whilst remote work offers considerable prospects for employing per-
sons with disabilities, it must not be construed as a means of abandoning
the obligation of States Parties to make public facilities accessible for mem-
bers of this community. It is an option that is to be made available for
8 F. MORRIS

employing persons with disabilities, whilst at the same time improving acces-
sibility at the workplace. Both efforts are complimentary.

The theoretical framework

This paper is anchored within the theoretical framework of social con-
structionism and human rights. Berger and Luckmann in their seminal
book ‘The Social Construction of Reality’ posited that society is created
by humans and human interactions which are regarded as habitualization.
This is the process by which any frequently repeated action becomes a
pattern, can then be performed again in the future in the same manner
and with the same economical effort (Berger and Luckmann 1966). It is
this repeated action that gives meaning to objects and things in society.
According to Mitcham and Ryder, social constructionism is concerned
with the meaning, notion or connotation placed on an object or event by
society and adopted by the members of that society based on how they
relate or deal with the object or event (Mitcham and Ryder 2005). Individuals
construct meaning based on their socialization and relate to things/individ-
uals based on their lived reality.
Tom Andrews argues that social constructionism is concerned with the
nature of knowledge and how it is created and as such it is unconcerned
with ontological issues. Society is viewed as existing both as a subjective
and an objective reality. Meaning is shared, thereby constituting a taken-for-
granted reality (Andrews 2012).
Social constructionism has direct implications for understanding persons
with disabilities. Because, it is individuals in society that determine, through
the various barriers they place in the pathway of persons with impairments,
how these individuals are included and perceived in society. To this end, we
turn to Mike Oliver’s social model of disability for understanding. In this
context, Oliver opines that:

1. Impairment- lacking part of or all of a limb or having a defective limb,

organism or mechanism of the body;
2. Disability- the disadvantage or restriction of activity caused by a
contemporary social organization which takes no or little account
of people who have physical impairments and thus excludes them
from the mainstream of social activities (Oliver 1990, p.33–34).

Oliver’s social model perspective is used to anchor the theoretical frame-

work for this paper. Because, one of the preeminent restrictions placed in
the pathway of persons with disabilities in their quest to be included in
society is that of access to employment (United Nations 2018). Individuals
are socialized to believe that a person with a disability cannot make a
 Disability & Society 9

meaningful contribution to society and so these individuals should be con-

fined to their homes (Anderson 2014). Such thoughts have been socially
constructed and repeated over the years and have been habitualized in
developing countries (Oliver 2013).

Human rights

Recognizing the nature of society and the barriers relating to persons with
disabilities, efforts had to be made to reinforce the fundamental rights
and freedoms of members of this community. The human rights perspec-
tives affirm the view that all persons with disabilities are entitled to the
said fundamental rights and freedoms accorded to individuals without a
disability in the varied international human rights treaties (Skarstad 2018).
This is why the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
was established in 2006 by the United Nations (2006). The CRPD has not
created any new rights to persons with disabilities but instead has con-
flated established rights in a specific treaty for persons with disabilities.
Germane to this paper from the vista of the CRPD are Articles 9 and 27.
These two articles make pellucid, the rights of persons with disabilities to
work and access to modern technologies. Article 9 of the CRPD requires that
States Parties put in place measures to ensure that persons with disabilities
have access to public buildings, transportation, information and information
communication technologies. The provision of accessibility, according to the
Committee on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is
an ‘ex ante duty’, meaning that, States Parties have the duty to provide
accessibility before receiving an individual request to enter or use a place
or service (Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. 2014, p.7).
Accessibility might be subject to progressive realization. However, it must be
accomplished by States Parties that have signed and ratified the CRPD.
Notwithstanding this obligation by States Parties, the COVID-19 environ-
ment has demonstrated that individuals can work efficaciously from home
and whilst it is desirable for persons with disabilities to be included in the
mainstream workplace, the option of remote work for persons with disabil-
ities should be given reasonable consideration by the authorities as one of
their options. The aim must be to reduce and ultimately eradicate the over
80% unemployment rate that exists among persons with disabilities in devel-
oping countries (World Health Organization 2011).
Similarly, Article 27 outlines the right of persons with disabilities to work.
It mandates that States Parties put in place measures to ensure the inclusion
of persons with disabilities in the public and private sectors. These measures
should include but not limited to providing tax incentives and affirmative
actions for the inclusion of these individuals in the labour market (United
Nations 2006).
10 F. MORRIS

For the lives of persons with disabilities to be empowered and meaning-

fully transformed, the human rights issues of accessibility and employment
must be addressed. These two issues connect members of this community
to the broader society on a daily basis. Furthermore, it allows these individ-
uals to participate in the productive capacity of their society and gives these
individuals an opportunity to earn a decent living.
Contextually, the two theories anchoring this paper can be conflated to
give the quintessence of the arguments being presented by this author.
Societies are constructed by human beings and in this construction; mean-
ings are assigned to things and objects. Overtime, these meanings become
habitualized and form the foundation of society. One such meaning that
has been habitualized is how persons with impairments are perceived and
treated in society. Individuals in society place barriers and other forms of
restrictions in their pathway and confine these individuals to their homes.
One such barrier that has been placed in the pathway of persons with dis-
abilities is that of access to employment (Oliver 1990). Access to decent
work is a fundamental right under diverse global treaties (United Nations
1948; 2006). Similarly, access to information and communication technologies
is prescribed as a right under the CRPD (United Nations 2006). Modern
technologies have been developed to enhance the participation and inclusion
of persons with disabilities in the mainstream of society through a process
regarded as ‘glabilitization’ by this author. Efforts must therefore be made
to enforce these rights so that persons with disabilities, where possible, can
be included in the labour market and make their contribution to the pro-
ductive capacity of their societies. The COVID environment has demonstrated
the possibilities of remote employment for persons with disabilities and this
is an area where there are tremendous prospects for members of this com-
munity in the Post-COVID era (Cirruzzo 2020).

The business process outsourcing sector

For the purposes of this paper, this author places the spotlight on the
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector for a case study on how employ-
ment for persons with disabilities can be increased significantly across the
world in the Post-COVID-19 era. Employment is one of the indispensable
rights of persons with disabilities which must be addressed by State Parties
that signed and ratified the CRPD (United Nations 2006). Access to employ-
ment has been featured as a considerable challenge for persons with dis-
abilities in the UN Disability and Development Report (United Nations 2018).
This human rights issue must be dealt with if we are to see meaningful
improvements in the quality of life of persons with disabilities globally.
BPOs constitute one area of remote work that is generating significant
employment opportunities in developing countries. Of the US$92 billion
 Disability & Society 11

remote employment industry, the BPO sector commands a sizable portion

with approximately US$26 billion recorded in 2019 (Mazareanu 2020).
As indicated earlier, BPO is a mechanism where companies contract certain
aspect of their business to a third party for execution (Digneo 2020). This
generally takes place as a part of the strategic decision by companies to
concentrate on core areas of their operation. Areas that can be conducted
at a cheaper cost at another location are generally contracted to a third
party for execution. This has been made possible through the process of
globalization (Giddens 1991).
With the advent of modern technologies, companies are able to outsource
varied aspects of their work to other locations to facilitate improvement in
economies of scale. The rapid technological advancement has seen a plethora
of technologies being developed to integrate persons with disabilities in the
workplace, the process that is defined as glabilitization by this author.
Computers are being built with what is regarded as universal design (United
Nations 2006) and these modern devices allows for greater inclusion of
persons with disabilities in sectors such as that of the BPO.
Business Process Outsourcing includes but not limited to services such as
procurement, finance and accounting, HR and facilities management. The
benefits can include lower costs, budget control and a better quality of
service (Krstic and Kahrovic 2015). In 2019, India was deemed to be the
most lucrative location for BPOs. This is due to its financial attractiveness
and availability of skills (Mazareanu 2019). In 2016, it was estimated that
India had over 3.7 million individuals working in the BPO sector (NASSCOM
2016) and a mere 1% was estimated to be persons with disabilities. The
Philippines is emerging as a very strong contender for the top position in
the BPO sector. Approximately 1.2 million individuals are employed in this
sector in the Philippines (Digneo 2020). It is suggested from research data
that there are over 18 million individuals currently employed in the BPO
sector across the world (Digneo 2020).
For one to have a viable and thriving BPO sector there must be adequate
infrastructure. First, there must be a lucrative tax regime that will assist in
reducing cost to the company. Companies move some of their business
operation offshore primarily because they want to reduce cost and one of
the major costs faced by companies is that of taxation. Any country that
offers lucrative tax mechanisms for organizations engaged in the BPO sector
for example, tax holidays; is an attractive destination. But, these tax holidays
should be used more progressively. These should be utilized by governments
in developing countries as a part of their strategy of mainstreaming persons
with disabilities into society by linking their employment to tax
concessions.
Then there must be skilled personnel to carry out the varied tasks for
which the BPO company has been contracted. BPOs are now moving up the
12 F. MORRIS

value chain and employing more technically skilled individuals and those
countries with such high skillsets will be attractive to these businesses
(Digneo 2020). However, developing countries have been ‘habitualized’
(Berger and Luckmann 1966) against persons with disabilities and so they
have been excluded from mainstream education and training institutions
(United Nations 2018). If persons with disabilities are to benefit from this
burgeoning BPO sector, governments must ensure that members of this
community are trained and equipped for such engagements. This would
mean that national training institutions would have to be designed to be
more inclusive of persons with disabilities so that they can gain skills in
information and communication technologies (ICT).
Importantly, there must be a reliable and dependable telecommunications
system. According to Mazareanu (2019), “Owing to its financial attractiveness
and availability of staff and skills, India was considered the most attractive
destination to offshore business services, with an index score of 2.82 and 2.23
respectively, according to a 2019 survey. Where India was not as attractive
though was in the new category assessed, digital resonance, scoring 0.87. For
comparison, the United States scored 1.21 for its digital resonance.” The point
being made here is that for one to be at the top of the BPO sector, telecom-
munications infrastructure must be impeccable.
The impeccability of the telecommunications industry will emerge when
there is a significant injection of modern technologies. In developing coun-
tries, this was made possible in the late 1990s to the mid-2000 through the
liberalization of the telecommunications industry (Morris 2020; Dunn 2012).
However, the liberalization of the telecommunications industry never ‘trickled’
down to marginalized groups unless governments took deliberate and stra-
tegic action to include groups such as persons with disabilities. In Jamaica
for example, the Government ensured that the Universal Service Fund Act
(USF) made provisions for persons with disabilities and organizations catering
to these individuals, and to be beneficiaries of the strategic effort to create
universal access to the Internet. The USF is a fund that is created from a
levy on calls terminating in Jamaica from overseas countries. Persons with
disabilities or organizations catering to these individuals can get assistance
with modern technologies to facilitate their education or employment needs
(Morris and Henderson 2016).
Problems will often occur in BPOs, but relevant steps should be taken to
minimise damage. These include reporting to the client in advance, discussing
how to prevent future occurrences and identify future damages. The funda-
mental principle is that speed is the foundation of the BPO sector and wher-
ever there are problems, these must be dealt with expeditiously.
According to Greg Digneo, the BPO sector will continue to grow by
approximately 6% over the next five years. Digneo gives some insights as
 Disability & Society 13

Country Reasons BPO Companies Currently in Country

Egypt • Government offering tax Satyam, Wipro and Sutherland
incentives to outsourcing Global
businesses.
• Booming infrastructure,
including Silicon Waha’s
technology parks.
• Highly skilled labor
well-versed in European
languages such as French,
German, English.
Mexico • Proximity to Silicon Valley. Sitel, PwC and Accenture
• A huge talent pool of
around 500,000 IT
professionals working in
the BPO sector.
• Political and economic
stability.
Columbia • Government sponsored Sitel, Convergys and Atlantic
technical training. International
• Minor time zone
differences between US/
Mexico.
• Investment growth due to
the depreciation of the
peso.

to which countries in the developing world will emerge as strong outsourcing

destinations based on assessment from 2017 data. Here are the top three
developing countries that will emerge as new destinations for outsourcing
in 2020 and with reasons:
Table showing top 3 BPO countries in developing countries (Digneo 2020).

Latin America has seen a 1644.3% growth in internet usage over the last
15 years, hence uncovering a considerable talent pool for outsourcing. In
2017, Mexico was the 8th most desirable outsourcing location in the world.
Similarly, despite having the lowest number of bilingual professionals in
Latin America, Colombia was the 20th most desirable outsourcing location
in the world in 2017 (Digneo 2020).
Undoubtedly, the BPO sector has tremendous prospects for employing
large numbers of individuals. This is an area that should be leveraged for
persons with disabilities so their human rights as it relates to employment
can be respected (Skarstad 2018) and these individuals fully included in
society (Oliver 1990). The advancement of modern technologies has made
this possible.

Persons with disabilities and the business process

outsourcing sector
Based on the nature of the BPO sector, persons with disabilities constitute
a natural fit once these individuals are given the requisite training. Most
14 F. MORRIS

persons with disabilities represent a stable source of employees. Research

has suggested these individuals to be less distracted at the workplace
(Bruyere, Erickson, and VanLooy 2004). Furthermore, due to the nature
of their disability and the stigmata associated with members of this
particular community, employees with disabilities tend to be very focused
and disciplined. Once these individuals get the requisite training, have
access to the relevant technologies, employees with disabilities will be
extremely productive (Wittmer and Wilson 2010). Furthermore, because
these individuals have been isolated from society (Oliver 1990), due to
years of ‘disability infodemics’, most members of this community are only
too anxious to work and earn a reasonable income (Ramachandra et  al.
2017). Currently, most of the jobs that are provided for persons with
disabilities in developing countries are largely rotated around jobs in
special workshops where they are paid below minimum wage (World
Health Organization 2011). There are greater possibilities for higher paying
jobs for persons with disabilities in the technological field. Thus, a natural
corollary exists between persons with disabilities and the BPO sector
(Muniz 2018).
Efforts are currently being made to employ persons with disabilities in
the BPO sector in developing countries. There is a special initiative in the
Philippines for example, to integrate persons with disabilities in the BPO
sector (Muniz 2018).
Muniz (2018, p. 2) states: “Persons with Disability now has the opportunity
to work in the sector through the Project Diversity and Inclusion of the
IBPAP, Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP), Unilab Foundation
and Edulynx Corporation. The Project Diversity and Inclusion aims to place
eighteen thousand persons with disabilities in the workforce by the year 2022.”
Some creative actions have been put in place to implement this special
employment initiative in the Philippines. If the world is to see greater
increases in the number of employed persons with disabilities in the
Post-COVID era, there will have to be deliberate and strategic actions by
stakeholders in the employment landscape. This is the kind of strategic
action that is taking place in the BPO sector in the Philippines. Muniz (2018,
p. 2–3) outlines some of the features of the initiative as:
Following a program called WISE which stands for Workplace Inclusion
and Sustainable Employment, leaders of the Project DI will source persons
with disabilities with the help of Local Government Units (LGUs). Initially,
they will collaborate with LGUs from Pasig, Makati, Quezon City, and
Mandaluyong. Eventually, they will also collaborate with LGUs from Marikina,
Muntinlupa and much more. Sourced persons with disabilities from these
areas will then undergo training for BPO jobs.
The number of persons with disabilities that a participating company needs
to hire must be one percent of its total number of employees. So if it has five
 Disability & Society 15

hundred employees, it needs to take in five persons with disabilities. It will

also pay the usual placement fee for every successful hire. The accumulated
money will be used to sustain the Project Diversity and Inclusion. Currently,
there are about nine BPO firms that participate in the program (Muniz 2018).
The model being pursued in the Philippines finds favour with this author.
Whilst the percentage of persons with disabilities being employed in the sector
is seemingly low, it constitutes a template for adoption and expansion. Knowing
the negative attitudes towards persons with disabilities and the myths associ-
ated with members of this community in developing countries (World Health
Organization 2011 and United Nations 2018), employees with disabilities should
ensure that they exemplify themselves at the workplace and create an envi-
ronment for greater employment of members of this community. Relatedly,
governments must ensure that they make their education and training insti-
tutions more inclusive of persons with disabilities so that they can be equipped
to deal with the opportunities being created in the BPO sector.
Persons with disabilities have been excluded from the workplace in devel-
oping countries over the years and the model being pursued in the Philippines
is indicative of where countries need to go in order to transform the employ-
ment landscape for these individuals in a modern context. It is indicative of
creative approaches to integrate persons with disabilities in the workplace.
Such approaches are supported by the CRPD as adumbrated in Article 27, 1(h).
For the right to work by persons with disabilities to be respected and for
these individuals to be included in mainstream society, jobs in the BPO
sector are the types of employment activities that should be developed.
There is however some additional mechanisms that must be put in place
to significantly expand the number of persons with disabilities who are
employed across the world, using the BPO sector as a catalyst.

Recommendations
Based on the experiences during the COVID pandemic, it has been estab-
lished that jobs in the BPO sector can be done from home (Johnson 2020).
Some persons with disabilities have been lobbying for this to be used as
one of the mechanisms to employ persons with disabilities. Recognizing this
situation, the following are some recommendations to generate more
employment for persons with disabilities in the BPO sector globally that
employs approximately 18 million individuals.

1. For governments to negotiate with BPO companies to have 10% of

jobs reserved for persons with disabilities. This should be linked to
the tax incentives that are provided to these companies. Such an
initiative is likely to generate 1.8 million new jobs for persons with
disabilities across the world.
16 F. MORRIS

2. As a part of their strategies towards gender mainstreaming, govern-

ments in developing countries should make it mandatory for compa-
nies to provide employment data on disability. For example, they
should be required to indicate how many males and females with
disabilities are employed to their organizations.
3. The United Nations should encourage multi-national and multi-lateral
corporations to work with the strategic approach of governments to
have 10% of jobs in the BPO sector reserved for persons with dis-
abilities. The UN could enter on the reference through Article 32 of
the CRPD that focuses on international cooperation.
4. The global environment is extremely fertile for a group of persons with
disabilities to enter into a business venture in the BPO sector to employ
persons with disabilities across the world. An NGO catering to persons
with disabilities could establish this venture in collaboration with varied
private sector companies from developed countries.
5. In promoting a decent work agenda, governments in developing
countries should ensure that measures are put in place for the adher-
ence of decent labour standards for persons with disabilities. For
example, persons with disabilities should not be paid lower wages
than others who are employed in the sector.
6. Governments in developing countries need to make their education
systems more inclusive of persons with disabilities so that these indi-
viduals can capitalize on the advancement in modern technologies
and ultimately be able to transition in the labour market.
7. Governments in developing countries that have established Universal
Service Funds should use some of the financial resources to train
persons with disabilities in information and communications technol-
ogies (ICTs) so that these individuals can be fully equipped to take
up job offerings in the BPO sector.
8. Governments should make available to employed persons with dis-
abilities, one computer device that will aid in employment in the BPO
sector.
9. Those companies in the BPO sector that goes beyond the established
policy mechanism for employing persons with disabilities through
remote employment should be given further special incentives for
their efforts
10. Governments, along with NGOs catering to persons with disabilities,
should consistently engage in public awareness campaigns to correct
the ‘disability infodemics’ and demonstrate to the general public, the
talents and abilities of persons with disabilities.

It is important that in implementing these recommendations, consultations

should be done with the community of persons with disabilities in the
 Disability & Society 17

respective jurisdictions. For one to have a genuinely inclusive and partici-

patory society and for the human rights of persons with disabilities to be
respected, it is imperative that members of this community be involved in
matters relating to their development. This is a fulfilment of the global
mantra for persons with disabilities “Nothing about us, without us”
(Crowther 2007).

Conclusion
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about inestimable challenges for indi-
viduals across the world. But, whilst it has brought severe challenges for
individuals and societies, it has brought about some opportunities. During
the COVID-19 crisis, companies were forced to actively engage their employ-
ees in remote work. This has been made possible because of the considerable
gains in modern technologies that have served to transform individuals and
societies. One group to benefit from this massive expansion in modern
technologies is persons with disabilities (Lafayette 2018). This author regards
the process as ‘glabilitization’ which is a conflation of the words globalization
and disability and speaks to how modern technologies are enhancing the
abilities of persons with disabilities.
But, whilst modern technologies are being developed to enable persons
with disabilities, we are not seeing these individuals being reflected in the
labour market in any significant way. Data is suggesting a preeminent portion
of this population across the world being unemployed (United Nations 2018;
ECLAC 2017; World Health Organization 2011). The low levels of employment
among this population are largely attributed to the attitudes and stigmata
formulated by individuals in society towards persons with disabilities and
this is a violation of their human rights (Skarstad 2018). Disability is a social
construct (Oliver 1990) and this social construction has seen varied barriers
being placed in the pathway of these citizens. One such barrier is that of
access to employment.
The COVID-19 era has however shown that if individuals in society apply
the will to employ persons with disabilities, it is highly possible and practical
(Cirruzzo 2020). Universally designed technologies make it possible for per-
sons with disabilities to be included in the workplace. It is therefore possible
for persons with disabilities to be engaged in remote work and to contribute
to the productive capacity of their country.
The Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) is one such area that presents
tremendous prospects for employing persons with disabilities and realizing
their human rights and inclusion in mainstream society (United Nations 2006;
Oliver 1990). The examples cited in the Philippines are perfect testimonies
as to what is possible. Governments must lead the way by ensuring that
policies are put in place to make this right to work by persons with
18 F. MORRIS

disabilities become a reality. The radical transformation of the employment

landscape for persons with disabilities can only be attained through strategic
design. If governments should accept and implement the strategic recom-
mendation of getting BPOs to reserve 10% of their employees for persons
with disabilities in return for tax incentives, then the world will see an
increase in employment of the members of this group. The prospects for
increase employment for persons with disabilities in the Post-COVID-19 era
are therefore real and practical. It just requires the will and determination
by those who have power and authority.

ORCID
Floyd Morris http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7286-7549

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