In 1930, Mahatma Gandhi walked 240 miles to Dandi, challenging an unjust law with nothing more than determination, truth, and the will to act. That Salt March wasn’t just about salt it was about dignity, equality, and economic freedom.
Nearly a century later, the march continues. Not on dusty roads, but in offi ce corridors, boardrooms, and interview rooms. For many people with disabilities, real economic independence is still out of reach.
The barriers look different now inaccessible workplaces, biased hiring, pay gaps but the spirit needed to overcome them is the same: courage, persistence, and collective action.
At Speshally, we believe the next great march is from promises to paychecks, and from token gestures to true inclusion.
Why the Salt March Still Matters in Business
Gandhi knew that political freedom meant little without economic freedom. In the workplace today, that translates to recognising that diversity without employment opportunity is incomplete.
Hiring people with disabilities isn’t charity it’s building a fair, equitable talent ecosystem where everyone benefits.
Breaking the Modern Barriers to Inclusion
1. Accessibility Isn’t Optional Gandhi fought a system designed to exclude. Companies today must challenge physical and digital spaces that do the same.
We worked with an IT firm to make their recruitment portal screen-reader friendly they soon hired their first-ever blind software engineer.
2. Bias is the New Monopoly The salt monopoly was legal, but unfair. Today’s hiring bias may be unconscious, but it’s equally damaging.
Training hiring managers to spot and remove ableist assumptions from job descriptions to interviews changes who gets a fair shot.
3. Economic Freedom Means Pay Parity Gandhi knew dignity is tied to fair wages, Paying people with disabilities less for the same work is not just illegal it’s wrong.
One retail chain we work with introduced standard pay scales across all roles, regardless of disability.
Lessons from Gandhi for Today’s Leaders
● Lead by Example — Inclusion starts at the top.
● Empower Communities — Like the Salt March, progress needs everyone to participate.
● Turn Protest into Policy — Change sticks when it’s written into the system.
Final Thought
From Dandi’s sandy shores to today’s office floors, the journey is the same a march towards dignity, opportunity, and equality.
When companies remove barriers for people with disabilities, they’re not just checking compliance boxes they’re carrying forward an unfinished chapter of India’s freedom story: the right for every citizen to earn, grow, and lead without bias.
Let’s Walk This Path Together
At Speshally, we help organisations make this march possible by building accessible hiring systems, training inclusive leaders, and designing workplaces where every salary slip is a badge of independence.
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