Originally published here.
1. CONDUCT AN AUDIT OF ACCESSIBILITY IN YOUR ORGANISATION
Before making any changes, it’s a good idea to know where your organisation currently stands. Job Access provides employers with a self-assessment checklist that covers policies, procedures, training, and disability diversity in the workplace. By using this, you can identify the main areas that need to change and create a structured plan of improvement.
When conducting an audit of this nature, it’s important that you consider all types of disabilities, even those that aren’t readily visible. The primary types of disabilities to address in your audit are sensory impairments, including visual and hearing, cognitive, learning and neurological disabilities, motor disabilities and speech and language disorders.
There are also a variety of access auditors that you can reach out to. These auditors assess your office premises and facilities to see if there’s any work needed, and may also provide indicative costings.
2. UNDERSTAND YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
As an employer, there are a variety of different legal roles and responsibilities you have when it comes to workers with disabilities. Your legal team or advisor should take time to understand the different laws and policies out there, including:
- - Equal Opportunity Act 2010 and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)
- - Reasonable Adjustment and flexible work arrangements
- - Premises Standards and accessibility guidelines
- - Supported Wage Systems and Special National Minimum Wages for employees with disability
- - Workers’ Compensation in line with Commonwealth, federal and state laws.
There’s a lot of information out there, which is why Job Access consolidates employer roles and responsibilities. The website’s also filled with useful resources including an employer tool kit, information on government subsidies, and downloadable information sheets.
3. DEVELOP A DISABILITY ACTION PLAN
A disability action plan is an important tool to help your organisation better meet the needs of your workers with a disability. This should include any gaps you found inaccessibility from your audit and changes to your premises and facilities. However, it’s best practice to also include your organisation’s policies and procedures when it comes to employment, discrimination, and training.
It’s essential that your disability action plan is a team effort. This means building it together with legal, operations, and HR, as well as any workers with a disability in your organisation. There are also plenty of examples of action plans on the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) website that may be useful.
4. CHANGE FACILITIES / PREMISES: MAKE THEM MORE ACCESSIBLE
Employees with disabilities should have access to a safe working environment, as well as everything they might need to complete their tasks. This may mean making changes to your office space to make it more accessible.
While these changes should be made according to your disability action plan and your employees, some considerations include:
- - providing accessible parking spots
- - providing accessible bathrooms and toilets
- - changing the physical environment of the office to include special equipment
- - providing ramps, tactile indicators, or assistance for staircases
- - focusing on digital accessibility (such as website navigation and text size) to cater to workers with visual, auditory, motor or cognitive disabilities
- - booking employees accessible rooms if they’re required to travel for work.
5. TALK TO YOUR EMPLOYEES TO UNDERSTAND THEIR NEEDS
When it comes to providing reasonable adjustments in the workplace, it’s best to adopt an individual approach. An employee with a physical disability may require accessible toilets with more space.
Other employees with vision impairments may need larger computer screens. Each employee’s needs will be different depending on their disability, and understanding these needs is integral to making the right adjustments in your office.
When bringing onboard an employee with a disability, your HR team should ask them what they need to fulfil their role and responsibilities. From this, you can make the adjustments necessary, whether it’s adaptive technology assistance or physical modifications to the office.
Alternatively, you can also provide flexible work arrangements so employees with disability can work remotely if the environment is more suitable.
6. FOCUS ON TRAINING AND AWARENESS
As with any workplace, training and support are key to better support people with disabilities in your organisation. Create a training program that includes communication with employees who have disabilities and anti-discrimination policies, and make sure these are delivered regularly. It’s also a good idea to provide extra training for leaders and managers who have employees with a disability on their teams.
Lastly, remember to train your recruitment teams on your policy for employment for workers with disability and EEO. This ensures candidates aren’t discriminated against because of disability, and that their needs are clearly communicated during the recruitment process. It’s also best for HR teams to work with Disability Employment Services for training and support for employees with a disability.
7. SEEK FINANCIAL SUPPORT: EMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE FUND
According to legislation, employers don’t have to make adjustments if it causes “unjustifiable hardship” to the company (financially or otherwise). However, many employers aren’t aware of the Employment Assistance Fund (EAF), which provides financial assistance for changes to support workers with disabilities.
The EAF provides a free workplace assessment for eligible employees working at least eight hours per week for 13 weeks. This process can be initiated by the employee or employer and can help organisations better create a barrier-free workplace.
By creating an accessible and inclusive environment, you can support workers with disability in your workplace.
You can read the complete article here.