The Business Disability Forum (BDF) has published one of the most comprehensive pieces of research ever conducted into the workplace experiences of disabled people and people with long term conditions in the UK today. The Great Big Workplace Adjustments Survey 2023 looks at the experiences of nearly 1,500 disabled employees and 400 managers around workplace adjustments and inclusion.
The research finds that disabled people are still waiting too long for the adjustments they need to reduce or remove the barriers they experience in their jobs. Employees are also having to push for adjustments or even fund them themselves. Common adjustments include flexibility over hours and location, time off for medical appointments, as well as ergonomic equipment and assistive technology.
Disabled people are also facing a number of other disability related barriers at work, which go beyond changes to their individual roles. These include bullying and harassment, limited promotion and development opportunities, inaccessibility of programs and initiatives intended to support wellbeing, and wider inaccessibility of buildings and systems.
The 2023 survey shows that managers feel more confident talking about disability than they did previously and play a key role in the adjustments process. But multiple internal processes and limited powers to make changes in the wider organisation create additional barriers and leave managers feeling frustrated.
In response to the new research, Business Disability Forum is calling for employers to:
- Simplify their workplace adjustment process.
- Provide more support for managers and the role they play in workplace inclusion.
- Develop a wider workplace approach to understanding the experience of having a disability and to removing disability-related barriers.
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