Introduction: Working is a fundamental aspect of the occupational participation and inclusion of people with visible (e.g. motor, visual) and invisible (e.g., autism, chronic pain) disabilities. However, the working environement has to be inclusive and unfortunately, this is not the case of workplaces such as Airports (e.g., ableist hiring practices, physical and systematic barriers, stigma) regardless of the regulations in place.
Objective: Promote access to and sustain employment in the context of international airports, through recommendations to the Canadian federal government.
Methods: Semi-directed interviews (n=24) were conducted with personnel from the airport, airlines and security at 3 Canadian international airports, along with an evaluation of the accessibility of the physical environment of the same 3 airports applying the Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certificate (RHFAC) instrument.
Results: Among our finidings, three of the most important themes that emerged include: the need for proper education in the different sectors of the airport working environments; the urgency of rethinking the basic design of airports to make them accessible; and a perception that some individuals cannot perform certain tasks in specific types of jobs (e.g., having to use a firearm). The most important problems identified by the RHFAC include long distances, signage and the lack of adaptation of workstations in general (height of desks, lighting, etc.).
Conclusion: The barriers and facilitators to occupational participation of workplaces in Canadian airports, along with some possible solutions to improve accessibility for people with visible and invisible disabilities will be discussed at WFOT 2026 congress.