SEEPH, DuoDay, disability mission: how a manager can get involved concretely
SEEPH takes place every year in November. DuoDay is prepared months in advance. The Disability Mission awaits managers all year round. This practical guide tells you exactly what you can do, when, and how — without waiting to be an expert in disability.
80% of disability in the workplace is invisible — ADHD, autism, DYS disorders, chronic illnesses, mental disorders. These employees work in your teams without you necessarily knowing it, navigating daily in environments that are not designed for them. SEEPH, DuoDay, and the Disability Mission are three levers that managers — not just HR directors — can and must appropriate to make a difference. This guide explains how, with concrete actions classified by level of involvement.
1. SEEPH, DuoDay, Disability Mission: understanding the three levers
SEEPH — European Week for the Employment of Disabled People
Created in 1997, SEEPH is a national (and European) week of mobilization on employment and inclusion of disabled people. It takes place every 3rd week of November and is the most important visibility moment of the year on these issues. For companies, it is an opportunity to organize awareness events, testimonials, practical workshops, and internal communications on their disability policy.
DuoDay — A day in the company
DuoDay is a national initiative that allows a disabled person to spend a day in a company alongside a volunteer professional ("duo"). Organized in May, it aims to create connections between people distanced from employment and inclusive companies, while raising awareness among professionals about the daily realities of disability. It is a personal and direct commitment from the manager — not just from HR.
Disability Mission — The permanent structure
Mandatory in companies with more than 250 employees (article 26 of the 2005 law), the Disability Mission is the internal structure that drives the company's disability policy: OETH referent, monitoring of RQTH, workplace adjustments, ESAT partnerships, branch agreement. The manager is a key player in its operation — not just a simple recipient of its communications.
of disability in the workplace is invisible (AGEFIPH 2023) — your teams are affected without you necessarily knowing it
of disabled workers in companies with more than 20 employees — OETH obligation for which the manager is co-responsible
average annual cost per missing unit for a company that does not meet its OETH quota (AGEFIPH 2023)
of employee engagement in companies with an active and visible disability policy (Deloitte)
2. The concrete role of the manager in the disability policy
2.1 Why the manager is the key player — not just HR
A common mistake is to think that the disability policy is exclusively the responsibility of HR and the Disability Mission. In reality, the frontline manager is the most important person in the daily inclusion of an employee with a disability: they are the one who observes difficulties on a daily basis, adapts working conditions, creates (or not) a trusting environment that allows for disclosure, and makes decisions about adjustments in concrete tasks.
A Disability Mission without trained and committed managers remains an empty shell. Conversely, trained and caring managers can significantly improve working conditions and the integration of disabled employees — even in the absence of a highly developed Disability Mission structure. Inclusion happens in the daily gestures of management, not just in HR policies.
2.2 The 4 roles of the manager in the disability policy
Caring Observer
Spot the signals of difficulties in the team (decreased performance, repeated absences, isolation) without diagnosing or categorizing, and create the framework for an open conversation.
Low effort · High impactDisclosure Facilitator
Create the conditions of trust that allow an employee to reveal an invisible disability. Ensure absolute confidentiality. Guide towards resources without imposing.
Low effort · High impactJob Adapter
Implement concrete job adjustments in connection with the Disability Mission and the occupational physician. Document the adaptations. Regularly evaluate their effectiveness.
Moderate effort · High impactInclusion Ambassador
Participate in SEEPH, host a DuoDay, share resources with the team, normalize the topic of invisible disability in professional conversations.
Moderate effort · Collective impact3. Getting involved in SEEPH: the manager's guide
3.1 Before SEEPH: prepare in advance (September-October)
SEEPH is not improvised. Managers who participate in a meaningful way plan their actions as early as September. Here is the ideal preparation timeline:
September — Identify possible actions
Get in touch with the Disability Mission to know the planned program. Suggest hosting a sensitization session in your team. Identify if an employee would be willing to share their experience (with explicit consent and preparation).
October — Prepare the team
Inform the team about the organization's participation in SEEPH. Share a simple sensitization resource (infographic, article). Create an open dialogue space on the topic of invisible disability.
November — Act during SEEPH
Organize or co-facilitate a sensitization workshop with the Disability Mission. Share testimonials (with consent). Announce a concrete action that the manager commits to implementing in their team within 3 months.
December-January — Capitalize
Take stock with the team. Implement the commitment made. Report the identified accommodation needs during the SEEPH to the Disability Mission for the action plan for the following year.
3.2 Concrete actions during the SEEPH — classified by commitment
| Action | Required time | Estimated impact | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Share an article or resource on invisible disability with your team | 15 minutes | Normalizes the subject, opens the door to conversations | Beginner |
| Put the subject of disability on the agenda of a team meeting | 30 minutes | Signals that the manager is an ally — facilitates future disclosures | Beginner |
| Participate in an awareness event organized by the Disability Mission | 2 hours | Real skill development, increased legitimacy with the team | Intermediate |
| Take a certified training on invisible disability | 4–8 hours | Strong and lasting skills, valuable in the managerial career path | Advanced |
| Host a testimony from a volunteer employee | 1 hour + preparation | Strong emotional impact on the team — breaks stereotypes sustainably | Advanced |
| Publicly commit to a concrete inclusion action | 5 minutes of speech + action | Managerial credibility, strong signal of team culture | Expert |
Invisible Disability: What the Manager Needs to Know
This 100% online training provides managers, HR directors, and executives with the keys to understand invisible disability in the workplace (ADHD, autism, DYS disorders, chronic illnesses, mental disorders), identify weak signals, create a trusting environment, and effectively engage in their organization's disability policy. It is ideal as preparation for the SEEPH or as foundational training for ally managers. Qualiopi certified, fundable by OPCO, deployable in multi-employee licenses.
Discover the training →4. DuoDay: Hosting a disabled person for a day
4.1 What the manager needs to prepare
The DuoDay is an intense day — for the "duo" and for the manager hosting it. Well prepared, it is a transformative experience for both parties and for the team. Poorly prepared, it can be an uncomfortable day that leaves a negative impression. The difference lies in the preparation beforehand, the clarity of the objective, and how the manager involves their team.
📋 Manager's checklist for welcoming a DuoDay
- D-30: Register on the national DuoDay platform — Indicate your sector, position, and proposed activities. Do not promise what you cannot deliver.
- D-15: Contact the "duo" — Call or exchange written messages to get to know each other, understand specific needs, and adapt the program if necessary.
- D-7: Prepare the team — Inform the team about the arrival of a DuoDay visitor, briefly explain the initiative, and invite them to participate naturally.
- D-1: Prepare the program — 3 to 4 varied activities representative of the position. A lunch break with one or two team members. A debriefing session at the end of the day.
- Day D: Welcome with kindness — Present the workspace, colleagues, and activities. Adjust the pace to the person's needs. Avoid stressful or overwhelming situations.
- D+7: Share feedback — With your team, with the Disability Mission, and on professional networks if the person consents. The manager's testimony after a DuoDay is a strong signal of an inclusive culture.
5. The Disability Mission: how the manager gets involved on a daily basis
5.1 The 5 concrete points of contact between manager and Disability Mission
The relationship between a manager and the Disability Mission should not be limited to passing on a request for workplace adjustments. The manager is an active partner of the Disability Mission in several key situations in their employees' professional lives.
Inclusive onboarding interview
Systematically offer all new employees information about the Disability Mission and adjustment possibilities — without targeting. This simple gesture normalizes the topic from the start.
5 minutes · Lasting impactReporting needs to the Disability Mission
When an employee reveals a disability, the manager directs them to the Disability Mission and the occupational physician. They do not solve it alone — they facilitate access to institutional resources.
Referral · Concrete impactInclusive annual interview
Systematically include an open question about adaptation needs in the annual interview: "Is there anything that would help you work better?" — without linking it to a disability.
2 questions · Trust impactContribution to the DOETH report
Send to the Disability Mission the information about the accommodations in place and the needs identified in your team, to feed the DOETH and the annual disability action plan.
1h/year · Legal and strategic impact6. The legal framework: what the manager needs to know
6.1 OETH, RQTH and managerial responsibility
The Obligation to Employ Disabled Workers (OETH) requires companies with 20 or more employees to employ 6% of recognized RQTH disabled workers. Failure to comply with this obligation results in a contribution to AGEFIPH — up to €7,200 per missing unit for the largest companies. The manager is not directly responsible for the OETH rate, but their daily behavior directly influences the number of employees who choose to engage in an RQTH process within their team.
A caring manager, trained in invisible disabilities and capable of engaging in a trusting conversation on the subject, is a determining factor in an employee's decision to request an RQTH. This direct link between managerial behavior and the OETH rate is rarely mentioned — but it is real and documented.
💡 To go further: The Professional Future Law of 2018 strengthened the training obligations for managers on disability in the workplace. As part of branch or company disability agreements, training actions for managers on inclusion are eligible expenses for the deduction of the AGEFIPH contribution. Training your managers is cheaper than not training them.
🎓 Train your managers on invisible disabilities before the next SEEPH
The training Invisible Disability: What Managers Need to Know from DYNSEO provides your managers with the keys to get actively involved in your disability policy — SEEPH, DuoDay, and on a daily basis. Qualiopi certified, fundable by OPCO, deployable in multi-employee licenses for the entire managerial line.
7. DYNSEO tools for managers involved in the disability policy
📋 Inclusive interview guide
Annual interview framework adapted to address adaptation needs without stigmatizing, for the use of any manager.
Download →✅ Workplace accommodation checklist
The most effective accommodations classified by type of invisible disability, with associated costs and AGEFIPH funding.
Download →🔍 Weak signals sheet for invisible disabilities
Observation grid to identify warning signs of an invisible disability in your team, without diagnosing.
Download →📝 RQTH support plan template
Support plan framework for employees who have engaged in or obtained an RQTH, to be co-constructed with the Disability Mission.
Download →🔄 Team inclusion self-diagnosis
Self-assessment questionnaire for the manager: where is my team on inclusion? What levers should be prioritized?
Download →Recommended DYNSEO applications
🧠 CLINT — Cognitive stimulation for adults
Cognitive stimulation tool for adults, recommended for employees with cognitive disorders associated with an invisible disability.
Learn more →💬 MY DICTIONARY — AAC Communication
For collaborators with augmented communication needs, particularly in teams including profiles with autism or non-verbal individuals.
Learn more →Other training from the DYNSEO B2B catalog
❓ FAQ — SEEPH, DuoDay and Disability Mission
1. Can a manager participate in the SEEPH without prior approval from their management?
Yes, for individual and small-scale actions: sharing a resource, putting the topic on the agenda of a meeting, conducting informal awareness. For more structured actions (workshop, testimony, communication budget), approval from management or the Disability Mission is necessary. In practice, managers who get involved in the SEEPH are generally valued by their management — it is a visible and appreciated action.
2. Is DuoDay only for large companies?
No. DuoDay is open to all companies, associations, local authorities, and public structures, regardless of their size. SMEs with 10 employees participate in DuoDay with as much impact as large groups. Registration is done individually on the national platform duoday.fr — the manager registers in their name and proposes a day in their specific work environment. The size of the structure is not a criterion.
3. How can a manager approach the topic of invisible disability with an employee without seeming intrusive?
The key is to start from the concrete difficulties observed, not the presumed disability. "I feel like some tasks are taking a lot of your energy right now — is there something we could adapt to make it more comfortable?" is a respectful way to start the conversation. This question opens the dialogue without labeling, diagnosing, and allows the employee to respond at the level of detail they wish.
4. Can a manager propose a RQTH to an employee without them having mentioned it?
The manager cannot directly propose a RQTH — that would be an intrusion into private life. However, they can, in the context of a conversation about accommodations, generally mention the existence of support measures: "There are aids and measures for people with specific needs at work — the Disability Mission can talk to you about it confidentially if you wish." This wording opens the door without targeting or imposing.
5. Can the DYNSEO training "Invisible Disability" be taken before the SEEPH?
Yes, and it is the ideal timing. Taking the training in September-October allows for approaching the SEEPH with the necessary skills to lead relevant awareness actions, answer team questions, and commit to concrete actions that last over time. The training is 100% online, at one's own pace, and can be completed in a few hours — compatible with the schedule of an operational manager.
6. How can the impact of a manager's involvement in disability policy be measured?
Simple and concrete indicators: number of employees who have initiated a RQTH process in the team over the year, number of workplace accommodations implemented, team engagement score in internal surveys, absenteeism rate in the team. These indicators do not allow for direct causality to be attributed to the manager's involvement — but they outline a correlation that HR departments systematically observe in teams with trained and engaged managers.
7. What types of invisible disabilities are most common in teams in France?
The most common invisible disabilities in the workplace are, in order of prevalence: chronic illnesses (diabetes, heart conditions, autoimmune diseases — 15% of the workforce), mental disorders (depression, anxiety disorders, bipolarity — 10 to 15% of the workforce), neuroatypical disorders (ADHD, autism, DYS disorders — 8 to 12% of the workforce), and chronic musculoskeletal disorders. In a team of 20 people, there are statistically 3 to 5 employees affected by an invisible disability.
8. Is the Disability Mission mandatory for all companies?
The legal obligation to designate a disability referent applies to companies with at least 250 employees (Article 26 of the law of February 11, 2005). For smaller companies, there is no formal obligation for a Disability Mission, but the OETH obligation (6% for companies with 20 employees and more) applies. Very small enterprises and SMEs can still designate a voluntary disability referent and rely on the resources of AGEFIPH (Cap Emploi, online resources, funding for accommodations).
🚀 Prepare your managers to get involved in disability policy all year round
The training Invisible Disability: What Managers Need to Know from DYNSEO is the go-to resource for managers who want to go beyond SEEPH and create a sustainable culture of inclusion. Qualiopi certified, fundable by OPCO, deployable in multi-employee licenses.
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