29 January 2004 - Disability and Business: Employers’ and Service Providers’ responses to the Disability Discrimination Act in 2003 and preparation for 2004 changes
Research published today by the Department for Work and Pensions and carried out by the Centre for Research in Social Policy (CRSP) and the British Market Research Bureau (BMRB), explores businesses, awareness of, and responses to the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) and forthcoming changes to the legislation which are planned for October 2004.
The main findings are as follows:
Adjustments for disabled people
- Most workplaces that had employed a disabled person (83 per cent) and most businesses which provide a service to the public (74 per cent) had made or planned to make adjustments to assist disabled people.
- Three quarters of these employers had found these adjustments easy to make, however making adjustments caused more difficulties for service providers. Only 40 per cent said they had not encountered any problems.
- Generally, most employers had done little to assist disabled people through the application and interview process, though three quarters (76 per cent) of employers said it would be easy to guarantee disabled applicants an interview.
- There may be a lack of understanding of the diverse nature of disability, shown by the fact that adjustments for customers tended to be changes to physical accessibility, rather than to communication, staff training, or the way services are provided.
Motivators for change
- The most commonly reported reasons for making adjustments were that it was perceived to be the right thing to do and to lead to benefits increasing a business's customer base or boosting its public image.
- Though it was generally not a motivating factor, some businesses reported that the DDA had been used as guidance in making adjustments. The DDA was more influential in motivating changes made for customers than employees.
Barriers to change
- Some employers (33 per cent) felt that taking on a disabled person is a major risk for an employer, and around half (47 per cent) reported that their workplace would find it difficult to retain an employee who became disabled.
- Low awareness of the DDA is the most important barrier to making adjustments. Size of workplace is also an important factor - smaller workplaces are less likely to make adjustments for disabled people.
- The perceived cost of making adjustments is also a barrier to making adjustments, though in reality only 26 per cent of business said that high costs were a problem.
Awareness and understanding of the DDA
- Awareness of the current provisions of the DDA was patchy. Awareness was highest in the public or voluntary sectors and larger workplaces. Awareness is also greater at head office level than the local level.
- 63 per cent of employers were spontaneously aware of some legislation giving rights to disabled employees or applicants, though not all knew the name of the legislation.
- 30 per cent of workplaces that provide a service were spontaneously aware of some legislation giving rights to disabled customers or clients, though again, not all knew the name of the legislation. Nearly one third (31 per cent) of workplaces that provide a service to the public were unaware of provisions in both parts 2 and 3 of the DDA.
- Awareness of forthcoming 2004 changes was low – around half (46 per cent) of service providers who were aware of the DDA were aware of the forthcoming changes to the Act.
- Only 3 per cent of employers who are currently exempt from Part 2 of the DDA (as they have fewer than 15 employees) knew that this exemption was due to be lifted. In addition very few of these employers were aware of any legislation giving rights to disabled employees, or knew that they were currently exempt.
- The concept of ‘reasonable adjustments’ was poorly understood by businesses who reported that practical examples would be useful.
Notes for editors
- The research was based on around 2000 telephone interviews and 40 case studies, conducted in 2003 with workplaces in a variety of business sectors and of various sizes and locations within the UK. The sample was drawn from the BT Business Database and weighted back to the Interdepartmental Businesses Register (IDBR) which provides a comprehensive count of businesses in the UK.
- The Disability Discrimination Act Part 2 makes it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against an employee or applicant for a reason related to their disability. Part 3 makes it unlawful for those who provide a service to the public to discriminate against a customer for a reason related to their disability. Both Parts 2 and 3 of the DDA require businesses to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to ensure disabled people are not disadvantaged.
- From October 2004 employers of fewer than 15 employees and most currently excluded occupations like police officers, prison officers and fire fighters will be brought into the scope of the employment provisions of the DDA for the first time. From the same date, service providers will be required to take reasonable steps to remove, alter or avoid physical features of their premises (like steps or narrow doorways) which make it impossible or unreasonably difficult for disabled people to access their services. Or they may have to make the service available by a reasonable alternative method.
- More details of the DDA and guidance on the rights and duties it confers can be obtained from the Disability Rights Commission website: www.drc-gb.org.
‘Disability and Business: Employers’ and Service Providers’ responses to the DDA in 2003 and preparation for 2004 changes’ by Simon Roberts, Katherine Hill, Joanne Rennison, Bruce Stafford, Claire Heaver, Nicholas Howat, Graham Kelly, Shuba Krishnan, Penelope Tapp and Andrew Thomas, DWP Research Report Series (no. 202) is published on 29 January 2004. A summary and copy of the report are available on the DWP website: http://www.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/index.asp
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