As part of coherent equality, diversity and inclusion and employee engagement strategies, employers should undertake thorough reviews of policies and working practices. Feedback from employees with disabilities and long-term conditions is useful in developing an open and inclusive workplace culture.
Our viewpoint on disability equality at work gives recommendations for employers, with additional information below.
Inclusion policy
It’s a good idea to produce and actively use a written inclusion and diversity policy. Employers may have a defence to a claim if they can show that they took all reasonable steps to prevent discrimination. A comprehensive current policy and recent relevant training will help employers to distance themselves from liability for acts by an individual perpetrator employed by them. A policy also demonstrates legal and moral obligations towards being a diverse and inclusive employer are being taken seriously.
Making reasonable adjustments
Employers are required to understand the barriers a disabled employee is experiencing and must put adjustments in place to accommodate them and resolve difficulties.
Employers should involve the employee in discussions about 'reasonable' adjustments and the resources (including finances and equipment) of the whole organisation can be taken into account when deciding what is ‘reasonable’.
Reasonable adjustments can include:
- Altering premises – such as automated doors, ramps, or quiet spaces.
- Altering assessment procedures – such as giving extra time, or providing assistive technology.
- Training, mentoring or support (such as speech to text software).
- Modified or specialist equipment – such as supportive chairs, height-adjustable or standing desks.
- Communication – providing an interpreter (for example, for deaf people or those with a speech impairment).
- Time off during working hours – for example, for hospital appointments, physiotherapy, counselling, or treatment.
- Flexible working or adjusted hours.
Non-visible disabilities
Employers may need to make reasonable adjustments for employees with disabilities that are not obvious, sometimes referred to as non-visible disabilities. This may include things like diabetes, autism spectrum disorders, gastric problems, depression or anxiety. People with visible disabilities may also have non-visible ones.
Managers may be unaware of disabled team members, and there is no legal obligation for employees to reveal a disability unless they need reasonable adjustments or there is a health and safety risk. It may be unnecessary to establish if employees have non-visible disabilities if no changes to their working practices are needed. Trying to establish if the legal definition of disability is met may be unnecessary if problems can be resolved by dialogue, leading to changes to help performance. In some cases, it may be best practice to make adjustments for anyone with problems at work, with their agreement.
Some people may be in denial about a condition or may conceal it due to fear of discrimination. Line managers should look for warning signs such as poor performance, persistent lateness or days off sick. Open and supportive working environments should ensure that employees can discuss difficulties and help maximise full participation of all team members. Further examples of reasonable adjustments for those with hidden disabilities may include:
- Providing quiet workspaces to reduce distractions.
- Allowing part-time home working.
- Monitoring workload and targets.
- Clear, unambiguous instructions.
- Dividing work into smaller tasks.
- Allowing telephone calls in work time to a family member for support.
- Allowing more frequent breaks for example for stress management techniques.
- Pre-notification of any changes to desk space or other routines.
Pre-employment medical questionnaires
The Equality Act 2010 made it unlawful to issue pre-employment medical questionnaires, except in some limited circumstances. Before offering employment, health-related questions can only be asked to:
- Help decide if reasonable adjustments are needed in the selection process.
- Help decide whether an applicant can carry out an essential part of the job.
- Monitor diversity amongst applicants.
- Take positive action to address a current under-representation among disabled people in the workforce.
- Ensure that an individual does have a disability if there's a genuine occupational requirement for it (for example, a mental health counsellor being required to have experience of mental health issues).
Challenging stereotypical thinking
Stereotypical thinking and unaddressed unconscious bias can lead to bad decision-making. Employers should meet the individual needs of each employee and identify solutions that will work for the person and the business.
- Disability shouldn't be confused with ill-health and may not be health-related at all.
- Disability may not be immediately obvious. For example, a very small percentage of people with disabilities are wheelchair users or Braille users.
- More people acquire their impairment or condition during their adult life rather than at birth.
- A disability or condition can affect different people in different ways. Therefore, when making adjustments, consider the individual and their specific circumstances, not their condition.
- Corporate image and reputation can be seriously damaged or enhanced by the negative or positive experiences that people with disabilities and their friends, families, and carers have of your organisation.
- People with disabilities continue to find it significantly more difficult to get a job, because employers fail to manage disability positively.
- It’s possible to make simple changes to jobs to successfully employ someone with a disability without serious cost, or even at no cost at all. Funding for workplace adjustments is available to most UK employers through Access to Work.
Recommendations for positive progress
Think inclusively when devising all people policies and procedures and aim to cater appropriately for the needs and preferences of individuals.
Develop strategies to ensure all employees have a voice and work with employee network groups to facilitate two-way conversations about equality, diversity and inclusion in a safe space.
Line managers should be trained to manage employees effectively, and understand their legal obligations as well as their employer’s policy expectations. Disability ‘awareness’ training on its own is not enough: line managers need to know how to navigate conversations about disability and conditions with employees and understand how to arrange and implement reasonable adjustments and how to manage their team in an inclusive way.
The Department for Work and Pensions’ Disability Confident scheme has published, in collaboration with us and a panel of experts, a good practice guide for line managers on recruiting, managing and developing people with a disability or health condition.
The government has launched a Voluntary Reporting framework encouraging employers to report what steps they are taking to support their disabled employees and promote employee mental health and wellbeing. It also provides direction and support to encourage employers to report the percentage of individuals in their organisation who have a disability or a long-term physical or mental health condition. The framework aims to help organisations make positive progress in successfully managing disability and fairness at work. We submitted a response to the Disability Unit (in the Cabinet Office) consultation about workforce reporting on disability, including whether such reporting should be made mandatory.
See the advice hub launched by Acas for advice on ensuring that workers with disabilities get the best support at work.
