BLOG
How to hire people with autism spectrum disorder
Updated on 29th October 2025
If your business is employing people with autism, you’ll benefit from a diverse and inclusive workforce with individuals offering a unique set of professional strengths. These can include exceptional attention to detail and creative skills.
When you’re recruiting for a role, you must offer a fair process to all of your candidates. But if an applicant reveals they’re autistic, there are certain UK laws and hiring processes your business needs to be aware of. In this expert guide, we’ll explore everything you need to know so you remain compliant.
Recruit with confidence and compliance
Speak to us for an honest, no obligation chat
0345 226 8393 Lines are open 9am – 5pm
Key considerations when employing people with autism
According to the National Autistic Society’s work data, just 16% of autistic adults in the UK are in full-time paid employment and only 32% are in some kind of paid work. Some of this stems from a rigid stance on what makes a “successful” employee. The concept is often associated with attributes such as communication skills, emotional intelligence, and the ability to “fit in” to the workforce.
While a culture of neurodiversity acceptance is the end goal, this can’t be achieved without neurodiversity in the workforce. This is important given that, in many cases, recruitment processes are naturally weighted against neurodiverse candidates.
Even organisations with the best of intentions can be caught out by this, so it’s critical your hiring team is diligent in having a fair recruitment process. It’s mandatory under the Equality Act 2010, which has nine protected characteristics. One is disability, which autism (ASD) falls under and means you can’t dismiss a job candidate for having this condition.
With this in mind, the core values of equality and objectivity must be set across every stage of your hiring strategy. The exact nature of the individual stages is also key and this is where flexibility becomes a key value. For instance, a traditional face-to-face interview process may not be a comfortable or productive environment for an autistic candidate.
In this case, the organisation must always attempt to make reasonable adjustments where necessary and applicable. This will enable the candidate to perform in a manner that suits their strengths and personality to the greatest extent possible.
Focus on the candidate experience when employing autistic adults
It’s good business practice to create a company culture that accepts, promotes, and nurtures neurodiversity. Due to the often-complex nature of disorders such as autism, the role of effective management is critical.
While individuals with such disorders can sometimes come across as, for instance, abrupt or highly introverted, managers who have received professional awareness training will be far better equipped to recognise this and handle the situation in a more pragmatic manner.
Not only is this likely to result in a quicker and better resolution, but the recognition and understanding itself is likely to instil a feeling of acceptance and appreciation among neurodiverse employees, which in turn can lead to better engagement and performance.
The working environment is another key area when it comes to neurodiversity. Hypersensitivity, for instance, is a common characteristic among individuals with autism and so it may be necessary for certain reasonable adjustments to be made in order to create a more inclusive workplace.
The same goes for communication, another area of potential sensitivity for autistic employees, whether verbal or non-verbal. Once again, this is a matter that managers and fellow employees can be made aware of and taught how to deal with more effectively by the organisation.
But no matter the specific issue, the common thread here is the need to make adjustments where reasonable and necessary. A willingness to do this by the organisation will, over time, serve to create an environment that is conducive with success and happiness for neurodiverse employees.
Recognising the value of autism at work
While compassion should be the main driving force here, it’s worth noting that embracing neurodiversity can also allow organisations to gain a competitive advantage.
Social stigma has led some people to believe the characteristics of autism should be seen as flaws. However, there are many examples of autism strengths at work:
- Excelling in rule-based thinking
- Acting on principles rather than consequences
- Strong attention to detail
- A sense of perfectionism
- Hyperfocussing on tasks
- Excellent long or short-term memory
- Strong pattern recognition skills
- Honest and a strong work ethic
- Strong sense of justice
With 68% of the UK’s autistic population unemployed, this is an untapped market for British businesses. As a result, those who take an objective and inclusive stance to hiring have the opportunity to access high-quality talent.
Rules on employing someone with autism
Under section six of the Equality Act 2010, as the employer you must not discriminate against a candidate with autism. Conditions such as ASD and ADHD may qualify as a disability (depending on individual cases), which means they’re protected from discrimination, harassment, and victimisation.
This means it’s unlawful to treat an ASD candidate differently to other applicants, whether this is more or less favourably, and you should also be open to making reasonable adjustments for affected employees.
During the recruitment stage, this may include holding job interviews over video calls rather than in person to reduce anxiety, stress, and sensory overload. You may also choose to remove a psychometric test (if you use one) from the process, as this can place autistic candidates at an unfair disadvantage.
If you choose to hire the individual, you may also need to make reasonable workplace adjustments for them. Common examples of this can include:
- Adapting the workplace to suit their needs (such as with a sensory-friendly office)
- Providing flexible working arrangements (hybrid or remote working)
- Providing clear communication to the individual’s preference (such as spoken or written)
- Offering flexible working hours (to suit the individual’s preferred working times)
- Providing noise cancelling headphones for use at work
You should discuss these potential adjustments with your job candidate, or new employee, directly. They’ll explain the steps that’ll help them work to the best of their abilities and it’s good business practice to support their needs.
If your business needs further support, we offer training courses on managing neurodiversity at work. These will help your workforce manage the specific needs to get the most out of any neurodiverse employees.
Get expert employer training on autism at work
Have a query about your obligations in regards to hiring people with autism? If you need advice on conducting a fair and non-discriminatory recruitment process, making reasonable adjustments, or dealing with performance concerns, our Employment Law and HR specialists are here to help with advice and training opportunities.
