Navigating the Hidden Void: The Unique Challenges of Accommodating Library Employees with Invisible Disabilities

Academic libraries have a long history of commitment to diversity, inclusion, and accommodation and are frequently models for other academic departments and outside industries. For example, libraries often consider users with disabilities and work to adapt services, collections, and technologies to increase accessibility for as many users as possible. Libraries also take care to accommodate employees with disabilities, but like many other industries, often unintentionally perceive disabilities only as ones that are immediately visible. This column will discuss the unique challenges that library employers may face when needing to accommodate employees with invisible disabilities, provide a selected overview of the literature surrounding invisible disabilities and library employees, and give selected tips to help library employers and employees better understand and accommodate employees with invisible disabilities.