Companies See High Return on Workers with Autism

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Each weekday, 24-year-old Bertram Nicholls leaves the three-story home he shares with his mother in Washington, D.C., and takes public transportation to his job in northern Virginia. He works for Freddie Mac, the federal home loan mortgage corporation. For the past year, the Marymount University graduate, who holds a Bachelor of Arts in liberal studies, has been working in software testing and data entry as an intern in support of the company’s business and technology projects.

Nicholls is not that different from most other working people—except that he has autism.

Companies around the world—particularly tech companies—have discovered that Nicholls and other job candidates with autism may be uniquely qualified to help them fill their talent pipelines. Recruiters say that such individuals tend to be meticulous, can focus for long periods and are comfortable with repetitive work. Those abilities can make them well-suited for a range of technical jobs, and those positions often pay very well.

Yet, for now, Nicholls is more the exception than the rule. For the more than 3.5 million Americans who have autism spectrum disorder, or ASD—a group of disorders that make it difficult for people to interact socially and communicate—good jobs are hard to find. Between 80 percent to 90 percent of adults with autism are unemployed or underemployed, advocacy organizations estimate. Most work part time in low-paying jobs, earning about $8 hourly.

“For the most part, [the low employment rate] is not because of the lack of ability among adults with autism to perform jobs—it’s mostly due to their challenges with social interaction and communication,” says David Kearon, director of adult services at Bethesda, Md.-basedAutism Speaks, an autism science and advocacy organization.

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