Most companies are willing to hire people with disabilities if they qualify for open positions, amid increasing awareness about corporate social responsibility and laws and regulations designed to protect the disadvantaged, a poll has found.

In the poll of 161 mostly privately owned businesses, conducted by the China Enterprise Confederation and International Labor Organization, 75 percent of respondents said they would like to employ people with disabilities, mainly because they believe these applicants have higher professional skills and companies have a social responsibility to employ them.

But NGO leaders and industry insiders warn that prejudice against people with disabilities continues and that there is a gap between companies' workforce demands and applications from disabled people.