Background: Social support in the workplace is crucial for the well-being of employees. For disabled employees, however, social support may have a different role, given structural, physical and social barriers in the work context.

Objective: Considering this, the study aims to explore the meaning and role of workplace social support in enabling disabled employees.

Methods: Using semi-structured interviews and qualitative content analysis, the experiences of 28 disabled employees were investigated.

Results: The participants highlight that social support is essential for balancing their individual needs with work demands by helping them deal with work tasks, create a suitable job framework, and develop occupational skills. Furthermore, the findings show that social support is both an expression and a driver of inclusion in the workplace when it is experienced as a regular lived working practice and reflects belonging.

Conclusions: Workplace social support is vital for disabled employees, as it helps mitigate work demands and addresses various barriers. Supervisors and coworkers play a key role in aligning disabled employee’s needs with work requirements and fostering inclusion. To ensure sustainable employment for disabled employees, organizations must create environments that encourage supportive relationships. Inclusive work design should enable equal access to workplace social support for disabled employees but ensure they are not overly dependent on it.

The complete article is published in the Journal "Work - A Journal of Prevention, Assessment and Rehabilitation" (2025).