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Whether its declaring that blindness prevents government employees from doing their jobs or suggesting that hiring workers with intellectual disabilities contributed to Federal Aviation Administration safety lapses, the Trump administration has repeatedly questioned whether people with disabilities belong in the workplace. This stance reflects widespread stigma and misconceptions about what people with disabilities can and do accomplish. Negative stereotypes and exclusionary practices persist despite the fact that people with disabilities are the largest minority group in the United States, representing nearly 30% of the population. Whether or not you identify as disabled, most people live or work in close proximity to others with a disability. For years I have researched how people with disabilities have been kept out of efforts to guarantee equal access for everybody, particularly in higher education. This exclusion is often due to unfounded beliefs about capacity, intellect, and merit, and the false premise that disability inclusion requires lowering standards. However, studies demonstrate that including people with disabilities is good for everyone, not just disabled people. Schools and workplaces are more collaborative and responsive when people with disabilities are included at all levels of the organization. In other words, disability inclusion isnt about charity; its about making organizations work better. Rolling back protections President Donald Trump issued executive orders the day he took office for a second time that aimed at ending government and private-sector efforts to make U.S. workplaces and schools more diverse, equitable, and inclusive. In addition to affecting LGBTQ+ communities and people of color, these measures could erode years of progress toward protecting the rights of people with disabilities to earn a living. Between 40 million and 80 million Americans identify as disabled. Even the higher end of this range underestimates the actual number of people with disabilities, because some individuals choose not to identify that way or even realize they qualify as such. That includes people with impairments from chemical and pesticide exposure, as well as many older people and those who are living with HIV and AIDS, to name some examples. Only 15% of people with disabilities are born with their impairment, so most individuals become disabled over their lifetime. Tracing historical precedents Blaming failures on people with disabilities and people of color echoes the harms embedded in eugenics, an attempt to scientifically prove genetic inferiority of disabled, LGBTQ+ Indigenous and Black people. Eugenics led to the institutionalization and forced sterilization of, and the coercive experimentation on, people with disabilities, immigrants and people of color across the U.S. Even the Supreme Court endorsed the concept in the early 20th century. These studies began to fade after World War II, but their legacy persists. Even today, forced sterilization continues to be lawful in U.S jurisdictions in 31 states and in Washington. Due to widespread activism and the advent of new legal protections, many states finally dismantled their eugenic policies in the late 1970s. But eugenics-era experiments provided foundations for contemporary medical research, standardized testing and segregated school placements. People with disabilities have far-reaching legal guarantees of civil rights and access today due to the Americans with Disabilities Act. The statute, which was enacted in 1990 and strengthened in 2008, provided protections in the workplace, educational settings, transportation and places of recreation and commerce, among others. It also guarded against negative perceptions of disability. For example, if an employer perceived someone as disabled and denied them consideration in the hiring process because of that, the candidate would be protected from discrimination under the ADAwhether or not they had a disability. While these advances are significant, many people with disabilities still do not have access to their basic civil rights. This is particularly true of Black people with disabilities, as they are disproportionately pushed out of school, disciplined more harshly, targeted for incarceration, and marginalized in disability representation and research. Gaining workplace accommodations Critics of inclusion efforts sometimes wrongly argue that employing people with disabilities is too costly due to the accommodations they may require. But the Job Accommodation Network in the Department of Labors Office of Disability Employment Policy found in 2023 that nearly 60% of these accommodations cost nothing. Whats more, many tax incentives are available to cover these costs. Disability civil rights law does not mandate hiring people who are not qualified or lowering standards to include the disabled. The law requires that candidates meet the essential functions of the job in order to be hired. According to a 2024 Labor Department report, the employment rate for working-age people with disabilities was 38% compared with 75% for nondisabled people. Though there are countless reasons for this disparity, many people with disabilities can and want to work, but employers dont give them the opportunity. Providing benefits for everyone Many accommodations designed for people with disabilities also benefit others. Captioning on videos and movies was originally meant to benefit the deaf community, but it also helps multilingual speakers and people who simply are trying to follow the dialogue. Similarly, visual or written instructions assist people with depression, Down syndrome or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, but they can also make tasks more accessible for everyone, along with breaking assignments into smaller components. Sensory break rooms benefit people with autism and post-traumatic stress disorder, while also providing a reprieve in a noisy work environment and minimizing distractions. Remote work options can make it easier for people with chronic illnesses to be employed, and they similarly benefit others who may have caregiving responsibilitieshelping attract and retain talented employees. Text-to-speech software provides people with cerebral palsy and nonspeaking individuals with options for communication, similar to options that many people already use on their phones. A large body of research demonstrates the broad benefits of making jobs and schools more accessible to people with disabilities, which is ultimately an advantage for everyone. Studies on diversity in educational and workplace settings also demonstrate positive outcomes. In a study of 10 public universities, researchers found that students who reported positive, informal interactions with diverse peers had higher scores on measures of more complex thinking, a concern for the public good and an interest in poverty issues, and were more likely to vote and develop strong leadership skills. In a national survey of human resources managers conducted in 2019, 92% of the respondents who were aware that one or more of their employees had a disability said those individuals performed the same or better than their peers who did not. Research published by the Harvard Business Review found many advantages to hiring people with disabilities. For one thing, people with disabilities can have unique insights that contribute to the workplace culture. The presence of employees with disabilities can make the environment of entire companies and organizations more collaborative. Earning a reputation for inclusiveness and social responsibility can improve customer relations and can give businesses an edge when they seek funding and recruit talented new employees. Ultimately, I believe its important to create conditions where anyone can thrive, including people with disabilities. Doing so benefits everyone. Lauren Shallish is associate professor of disability studies in education at Rutgers University – Newark This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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E-Commerce
A new album called “Is This What We Want?” features a stellar list of more than 1,000 musiciansand the sound of silence.With contributions from artists including Kate Bush, Annie Lennox, Cat Stevens, and Damon Albarn, the album was released Tuesday to protest proposed British changes to artificial intelligence laws that artists fear will erode their creative control.The U.K. government is consulting on whether to let tech firms use copyrighted material to help train AI models unless the creators explicitly opt out.Critics of the idea fear that will make it harder for artists to retain control of their work and will undermine Britain’s creative industries. Elton John and Paul McCartney are among those who have spoken out against the plan.The protest album features recordings of empty studios and performance spaces, to show what they fear will be the fate of creative venues if the plan goes through. The titles of the 12 tracks spell out: “The British government must not legalize music theft to benefit AI companies.”Profits will be donated to the musicians’ charity Help Musicians.“The government’s proposal would hand the life’s work of the country’s musicians to AI companies, for free, letting those companies exploit musicians’ work to outcompete them,” said composer and AI developer Ed Newton-Rex, who organized the album.“It is a plan that would not only be disastrous for musicians, but that is totally unnecessary,” Newton-Rex said. “The U.K. can be leaders in AI without throwing our world-leading creative industries under the bus.”Britain’s center-left Labour Party government says it wants to make the U.K. a world leader in AI. In December, it announced a consultation into how copyright law can “enable creators and right holders to exercise control over, and seek remuneration for, the use of their works for AI training” while also ensuring “AI developers have easy access to a broad range of high-quality creative content.” The consultation closes on Tuesday.Publishers, artists’ organizations and media companies, including the Associated Press, have banded together as the Creative Rights in AI Coalition to oppose weakening copyright protections.Several U.K. newspapers ran wraparounds over their front pages on Tuesday, criticizing the government consultation and saying: “Let’s protect the creative industriesit’s only fair.” Jill Lawless, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
Today, February 25, is a make-or-break day for Super Micro Computer (aka Supermicro) and its stock, which trades on the Nasdaq under the SMCI ticker. Thats because by the end of today, the beleaguered server company needs to file its delinquent Form 10-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). If it fails to do so, the company’s shares may be delisted from the Nasdaq. Heres what you need to know about its stock price ahead of the deadline and the possible outcomes should Super Micro Computer fail to meet its requirements. SMCI stock price sinks ahead of filing deadline As of the time of this writing, in early trading SMCIs stock price is down over 8% to to above $47 per share. Todays stock price fall follows an 8% fall yesterday. Much of the market is down this week, including big tech stocks, although not as dramatically. One reason for SMCIs fall is most likely jitters as to whether the company will indeed file its delinquent Form 10-K for the fiscal year 2024, as well as additional forms for the first two fiscal 2025 quarters with the SEC. The forms are both a legal requirement and a condition of being listed on the Nasdaq. Supermicro missed the earlier filing deadlines amidst a swath of negative news last year, which has rattled investors since August. Most prominently, the company has faced allegations of accounting irregularities. These allegations, along with a failure to file specific financial forms, have led to the stock price fluctuating wildly since the fall. Concerns surrounding these issues have led to a 22% decline in SMCIs stock price over the past six months. In November, the stock bottomed out at below $18 per sharea far cry from its high of over $122 per share earlier in the year. However, despite the companys most recent declines this week, SMCI stock has still recovered a fair amount since its November lows. Year to date, the stock is up over 55%. Where that stock price goes from hereat least in the near termmay largely depend on whether Supermicro meets its filing deadlines today. Will Super Micro Computer meet its 10-K filing deadline? Surprisingly, despite today being the deadline for the 10-K filing, Supermicro has not given any update on it since last week. On February 19, the company addressed the filing in a Q2 2025 preliminary report. At the time Super Micro Computer said that it continues to work diligently toward the filing of its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2024. It went on to state that Based on information currently available, the Company believes it will make such filings by February 25, 2025. Fast Company has reached out to Supermicro for an update on the filings. We will update this post if we hear back. What happens if Super Micro Computer misses its deadline? If Supermicro misses its deadline, SMCI stock may very well be delisted from the Nasdaq after the market closes today. However, as noted by MarketWatch, a Wedbush analyst says that Super Micro has the option of asking for another extension to file the required forms. That extension could be for as many as 180 days. This means today will likely end in one of the three following ways for Super Micro Computer: Supermicro may file its delinquent SEC forms by the deadline. Supermicro may not meet the deadline but receive an extension. Supermicro may not meet its deadline and not receive an extension. If Super Micro Computer achieves option No. 1meeting the deadline todayits possible that investors will react kindly. The next best-case scenario is option No. 2, where the company does not meet the deadline but receives an extension. Option No. 3 is the worst outcome. As of the time of this writing, which of the three above options comes to pass remains to be seen. This story is developing…
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