Supporting disabled staff to stay in work

Scope Chief Executive, Mark Hodgkinson, sets out how government and employers can better support disabled staff to stay in work.

For most people, a new job is a chance to start afresh, learn new skills and achieve their potential. But too many disabled people are denied this opportunity because they are forced to leave work.?

In fact, disabled people are nearly twice as likely as non-disabled people to fall out of work.?

This is bad for everyone. Businesses are letting talented workers slip through their fingers. Disabled people are missing out on the chance to work and fulfil their potential.?

As a result, the disability employment gap has remained stubbornly high for over a decade. And the number of disabled people who are economically inactive has risen.?

Why are so many disabled people falling out of work??

In our new report – Disability in the Workplace - we have found that there are four main reasons:

1. Negative attitudes and discrimination towards disabled people: Just over half (54%) of employers told us that they had concerns over whether a disabled person could perform as well as a non-disabled person at work.?As a result, the vast majority (90%) of disabled people who had experienced discrimination told us that it had led to them leaving their job.?
2. A lack of support at work:?Reasonable adjustments are a legal right for disabled people at work. Yet not all disabled people can access them. Almost half of disabled people (48%) who left work told us that they faced a problem with a reasonable adjustment. And 50% of disabled people who have fallen out of work did not have all of the reasonable adjustments they needed to do their job.?There are also issues with the Access to Work Scheme – which provides Government funding for adjustments which go beyond what is considered ‘reasonable’ for an employer to provide. 40% of disabled people have never heard of the scheme. While there has been a threefold increase in delays to get in an assessment over the past two years.?
3. Inflexible employers:?Flexible working has grown massively in popularity since the pandemic. Yet not all disabled people are benefiting. 60% of disabled people who had fallen out of work told us that they were not offered flexible working.
4. Issues with the sick pay system and the return-to-work process:?At just ￡109.40 per week, statutory sick pay is too low for disabled people to take enough time off work to recover from their illness. 24% of disabled people who needed to take sick leave felt forced out of their job as a result of their absence.?

How do we solve these problems??

Bold action is needed from both employers and Government to break down the barriers that lead to disabled people falling out of work.?

We’ve worked with disabled people and workplace experts to develop new recommendations for employers, which set out the change that we need to see.?

Our recommendations are far-reaching, aimed at breaking down negative attitudes, improving support and embracing flexibility. We want to see:

• better reporting on disability workforce data
• reverse-mentoring schemes introduced
• expanded disability leave
• a personalised approach to adjustments.

An adaptable approach to flexible working is needed too. We aren’t just talking about hybrid teams or working from home. True flexibility takes a tailored approach and might take the form of self-rostering shift work, matching working hours to outputs, and flexible hours and location.

With the Government set to publish a Disability Action Plan this year, there is a ready-made opportunity to introduce key measures that make it easier for disabled people to stay in work and turn the tide on disabled people leaving the workforce.??

We think our report is full of ideas on how the Government can do this, from reforming Access to Work to giving disabled people greater access to flexible working. With proposed funding for new ideas that can help reduce the disability employment gap, such as through a Disability Employment Endowment Fund.?

We’re here to support you?

At Scope we support businesses to become more inclusive and accessible employers, whatever stage of your journey you are at to becoming a more disability friendly employer. Our Workplace Disability Inclusion Programme provides businesses with support in overcoming the challenges they face with disability inclusion. Please do get in touch if you want to know more.??

I urge you all to read the report and take action. Together we can ensure more disabled people are not held back and can succeed in the workplace.??