Because It’s the Right Thing to Do: Autism in the Workplace as an Ethical Imperative

Although the business case for autism in the workplace has been made (see Agha et al., this volume), research has not fully considered the ethical aspects and implications of employing individuals on the autism spectrum. This chapter begins by reviewing the business and ethical cases for workplace diversity in general, in order to contextualize the limitations of the business case and the need for an ethical case for autism specifically. I argue that employers would do well to draw from both deontological and ethics of care perspectives, by, respectively, treating individuals on the autism spectrum the same as neurotypicals (not discriminating against them) even as they treat them differently (appreciating and accommodating their specific needs).