Companies falling short of employing people with disabilities

Most of the large organisations examined in a new study failed to meet Malta’s legal quota for employing people with disabilities. Instead, companies are opting to pay fines.

The finding emerged from a study of diversity, equality and inclusion practices in 10 large organisations operating in Malta, which found a significant gap between formal commitment to inclusion and what happens in practice.

Under Maltese law, companies employing 20 or more people are required to ensure that at least 2% of their workforce comprises of persons with disabilities. 

But the study, published by researchers Anna Marie Thake and JosAnn Cutajar, found that most of the organisations studied did not meet the requirement and instead paid the applicable fines.

The researchers said this illustrated the gap between formal compliance and meaningful inclusion in the workplace.

The study examined five Maltese-owned firms and five companies belonging to multinational groups, all employing more than 400 people. The companies represented several sectors including insurance, construction, transport and warehousing, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, energy, telecommunications, financial services and gambling.

The researchers caution that the findings are based on a qualitative study of 10 large organisations and should not be taken as representative of every company in Malta.

Disability inclusion remains a challenge

Disability emerged as one of the main diversity issues identified by HR interviewed for the research.

In several of the organisations, the approach to disability was primarily driven by the legal requirement rather than by a broader effort to recruit, accommodate and develop workers with disabilities.

The study also identified practical barriers that can make compliance and inclusion more complicated. 

Some HR mangers told researchers that employees with disabilities were working within their organisation but were not registered with the National Commission for Persons with Disability, making it more difficult for companies to establish whether they were meeting the legal quote.

In another case, a foreign-owned company’s use of psychometric recruitment testing was found to unintentionally exclude candidates with intellectual disabilities. 

The researchers said such examples highlighted the difference between having a formal commitment to equality and removing the structural barriers that prevent people from accessing employment.

‘Compliance’ is not the same as inclusion

The researchers framed the issue as part of a wider tension between compliance and genuine transformation.

The paper argued companies can have diversity policies, equality certifications and formal producers in place while still failing to change the structures and practices that produce equal outcomes, the study argues.

This is particularly evident in disability employment, where paying a fine can allow an organisation to satisfy the law without necessarily changing its recruitment practices.

The study said that HR departments have much a much bigger role to play than just ensuring companies comply with legislation. 

HR professionals are described as “institutional translators” who must interpret European, international and Maltese equality standards and turn them into practices that work in the workplace.

That can include changing recruitment processes, adapting training, improving communication, involving leadership and creating more flexible approaches to employees' needs.

Women are still underrepresented in leadership

Most of the organisations examined employed more men than women, while women were also underrepresented at leadership level and more heavily concentrated in administrative positions.

The research also showed that caregiving responsibilities continued to contribute to women leaving the workforce, despite the free childcare scheme having helped increase female labour force participation.

Some organisations were responding through flexible working arrangements, with greater emphasis on employee performance and outcomes rather than rigid working schedules.

Foreign workforce creates new challenges

The rapid expansion of Malta’s economy has also transformed the country’s workforce. By 2023, foreign-born workers accounted for 39.9% of the active workforce, according to figures cited in the study, including third-country nationals and workers from other EU countries.

However, the researchers found that many companies had limited formal strategies for manging increasingly ethnically diverse workplaces.

Communication was one recurring challenge, with some companies using pictorial instructions or providing language classes.

The study also raised concerns around the risk of wage exploitation among subcontracted workers, particularly in workplaces heavily dependent on foreign labour.

Maltese- vs foreign-owned companies

The study found a distinction between Maltese-owned companies and foreign-owned firms.

Maltese-owned organisations were generally more likely to rely on personalised, people-centred approaches, with owners and senior managers responding directly to employee concerns.

Multinational companies, meanwhile, were more likely to operate within structured DEI frameworks established by their international headquarters. Local HR managers then had to adapt those global policies to Malta’s particular circumstances.

The researchers argue that neither approach automatically guarantees inclusion.

Instead, effective DEI depends on the ability of HR professionals and managers to translate formal policies into everyday practices.

LGBTIQ+ support within companies

The study found that some organisations, particularly foreign-owned service-sector companies, had gone beyond basic legal requirements when it came to LGBTIQ+ inclusion. Measures included gender-neutral facilities, paid leave for gender-affirming medical appointment and more flexible uniforms policies. 

This contrasts with the findings on disability, where the researchers found that legal compliance remained a major obstacle for many of the organisations studied.

Ticking a box or real change

The researchers ultimately argued that companies need to move beyond a “check-the-box” approach to diversity and inclusion.

Formal polices, certifications and compliance requirements can provide a starting point, but they do not automatically change workplace culture or remove structural barriers.

Sustainable inclusion, the study said, requires continuous learning, accountable leadership, transparent opportunities for progression and sufficient authority and resources for HR professionals to drive organisational change.

The study said that HR professionals should be viewed not simply as administrators implementing policies, but as architects of inclusion who can help reshape recruitment, leadership development, workplace culture and employee progression.

For Malta's businesses, the disability quota finding provides a particularly stark example of the challenge: having a legal requirement to employ people with disabilities is one thing; however, creating workplaces where people with disabilities can actually enter, remain and progress in employment is another.