Employers should be providing sound-proof working booths and designated mental health days off to support the emerging generation in the workplace, according to HR experts.
There has been a big increase in neurodiverse diagnoses in recent years so as a result, HR experts advise building workplaces where everyone can flourish, including offering flexible work patterns, encouraging regular breaks and providing mentorship programmes.
It was revealed as part of a report [https://www.benenden.co.uk/gen-alpha-workplace], by Benenden Health, to highlight what employers can be doing to support Generation Alpha entering the workplace.
The healthcare provider's chief people officer, Mike Hay, said: "It is important to understand and support neurodivergent individuals, including those within Generation Alpha, who will make up a growing part of the workforce.
"Communication is key. Creating space for open, two-way conversations where employees feel safe to disclose their needs is essential, especially for those who may have faced stigma in the past."
The company has also been working with Neurodiversity in Business to inform the report.
Dan Harris from the organisation added: "Due to greater awareness and recognition, Autism diagnosis has increased by almost 800 per cent in 20 years and other neurodivergent diagnoses are also on the rise.
"So, businesses of the future need to adapt to this and are set to fail if they don't bring in measures to support these individuals.
“These measures include increasing understanding, through condition-specific training for HR, managers, and colleagues of neurodivergent people, encouraging an acceptance of difference in thinking styles, and recognising the unique strengths neurodivergent people can bring to the workplace if they are not forced into existing, rigid moulds."
It comes after research of 500 HR professionals, commissioned by Benenden Health, found 77 per cent are taking steps to make sure their workplace is suitable for neurodivergent individuals.
They are making sure to encourage open communication (40 per cent), urging people to take regular breaks (36 per cent) and implementing flexible working patterns (34 per cent) to suit the incoming generation.
More than eight in 10 (83 per cent) recognise making these changes as being important because everyone needs to feel supported (64 per cent), productivity will be better (47 per cent) and it will encourage better creativity (38 per cent).
While 64 per cent have seen an increase in neurodivergent employees advocating for reasonable adjustments in the workplace within the last year.
This is echoed in a separate study of 500 13-18-year-olds, also commissioned by the private healthcare provider, which found six in 10 know someone who is neurodivergent.
And, of those, 57 per cent are their friends.
It also emerged when 47 per cent enter the workplace, they already know they would want to work for a company that supports neurodivergent employees.
When quizzing the parents of the teenagers polled, it found 52 per cent of children openly discuss neurodiversity with their mums and dads – with 21 per cent doing so on a regular basis.
And 65 per cent of the adults would like to learn more about it, according to the figures by OnePoll.
More than half (51 per cent) put this down to an increased awareness nationally and wanting to be involved, while 49 per cent know someone who is neurodivergent and would like to support them.
Mike Hay added: “This this report is more than research. It is a starting point for meaningful change.
“In the next five years, the workforce will be the most diverse it has ever been, and we need to acknowledge that it takes time to learn and adapt our workplaces and leadership styles to support everyone's' needs.”
