At UKG, the ERG ADAPT (Accessibility and Disability Allies Partner Together) raises awareness around different abilities. ADAPT provides programming and support to U Krewers, as well as ensures our facilities, HR technology, and marketing resources are inclusive to people with disabilities. In 2024, we were proud to receive a 100% score on the Disability Equality Index for the fourth year in a row.
In honor of National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), UKG spoke with two members of the ADAPT ERG to better understand their experiences and how we can support peers, colleagues, family members, and candidates who may not conform to traditional workplace expectations.
Christine H., Manager, Professional Services Consulting
How does UKG support you in the workplace?
I have been living with my disability for 16 years. While I generally consider myself stable and healthy now, I still have good and bad days. With my condition, rest and stress management are everything when it comes to preventing a flare. Working at UKG as a remote employee allows me to manage those things with flexibility. The extra sleep, in place of driving to the office, helps me minimize fatigue and brain fog. UKG's fantastic benefits provide me with access to services I wouldn't be able to afford otherwise, including access to medical professionals such as specialists in the field of Rheumatology, Vision, Nutrition, Mental Health and not to mention access to the gym through our membership with Active & Fit Direct. The people are the cherries on top. I've been fortunate to work alongside managers and colleagues who support me when I need to step away for a mental health break or for doctor appointments. I am lucky to be here!
What advice would you give someone with a disability who is interviewing at UKG?
Just be yourself. Put your best foot forward and showcase your professionalism and skill. You are not defined by your illness. While you can choose to self-disclose (and should if you require accommodation), it is not required.
How has your membership in ADAPT shaped you both personally and professionally?
ADAPT has provided me with a safe space to openly talk about my physical and mental health. This has personally increased my appreciation for UKG and left me with a deepened desire to work on diversity and inclusion both in and out of the workplace. I am most proud of my contribution towards two things — the ERG mentoring circles and my attendance at the Disability:IN Conference. I was paired with three other ADAPT members through the mentoring circles which allowed me to network and build professional relationships with U Krewers I wouldn't have met otherwise, all while openly discussing our own disabilities along with those of our loved ones.
Through my attendance at Disability:IN, I was able to gain a deeper understanding of the statistics around disability inclusion and bring that knowledge back to my team at UKG. It was a true honor to have been able to attend the Disability:IN conference. It was eye-opening, wholesome, heart-wrenching, and inspiring. Truly an unforgettable and enriching personal experience that everyone should attend at least once if given the opportunity.
In celebration of this year's theme for NDEAM, could you share your insights on how we can ensure equitable access to quality employment opportunities for everyone, including individuals with disabilities?
Adopt the self-identify campaign and talk about it. Normalize mental and physical disabilities. Disabled Executive leaders should also publicly share their stories as it will help others feel safe in sharing their own.
Who do you turn to for mentorship, support, or advice?
On a professional level, I turn to anyone and everyone who will listen. I don't shy away from questions as I welcome new and different perspectives. On a personal level, I turn to my partner and my licensed therapist. I've found that keeping my personal troubles outside my inner circles has helped me better manage and navigate negative feelings and stress. Therapy has tremendously helped me find ways to cope with the difficulties of mental and physical health stressors while also managing the work stressors. At the end of the day, having a disability and coming to terms with it has helped me lead my life with gratitude. It's important to recognize the everyday wins.
What makes you proud to work at UKG?
I've worked at UKG for about nine years now. The one thing I'm most proud of is that people here generally want to help each other. We come across so many takers in our life, but I would say that most people I've worked with at UKG are givers. Those givers help keep the very hard work we do here worth doing.
Yuval P., Industry Marketing Manager
How does UKG support you in the workplace?
UKG supports me through my U Choose benefits — a benefits program that offers a wide range of reimbursement allowances to create a personal package that best meets your needs — where I can get noise-canceling headphones and special desk equipment that helps me perform better as a neurodivergent employee during my day-to-day. UKG also invests in and leverages updated technology for their employees. For example, having access to digital tools – like AI transcripts and closed captioning for meetings – helps me stay focused, retain more information, and reduces the amounts of errors or uncertainty within my notes.
What advice would you give someone with a disability who is interviewing at UKG?
The recruiters are meant to act as a partner for both the interviewers and the interviewees. Don’t be afraid to ask for accommodations, whether it’s having ASL signers present, or reviewing the questions ahead of time, or pre-recording your interview versus having a live one. Your interview is meant to help make you shine as an individual beyond your resume, and accommodations are meant to help elevate your experience.
How has your membership in ADAPT shaped you both personally and professionally?
I have been able to find resources that have helped me find ways to manage my disabilities outside of work, and I have learned of accommodations that I could request to help me perform better at work that I didn’t know were available to me.
In celebration of this year's theme for NDEAM, could you share your insights on how we can ensure equitable access to quality employment opportunities for everyone, including individuals with disabilities?
Individuals that have disabilities can’t participate if they can’t reach or access you. Employees that have disabilities, apparent and non-apparent, are the largest minority group that anyone can become a part of at any stage of their life, but it’s the group that is always considered last for diversity and employee support initiatives. Make sure that the needs and perspectives of individuals with disabilities are already integrated within your existing best practices. Organizations can stack processes to include best practices by sharing guidance and resources to make sure accommodations are an expectation, not an exception.
Who do you turn to for mentorship, support, or advice?
I have multiple mentors that I turn to for advice or support and I believe the more you have the better and having different people for different types of advice. Anyone can be a mentor and everyone you meet will know something you don’t know.
What makes you proud to work at UKG?
UKG has such a different company culture than I have ever experienced at my past employers. I can feel the impact that my individual contributions have across the company. I am proud to work at UKG because my feedback is heard and truly considered. I have been able to collaborate directly with C-suite executives, reimagine current processes, and affect internal trainings all within my first year.
- INTERESTED IN JOINING THE U KREW? EXPLORE CAREERS AT UKG.
- ADAPT IS ONE OF NINE ERGS AT UKG. READ OTHER STORIES FEATURING OUR EMPLOYEE RESOURCE GROUPS (ERGS).
