Policy and Procedure Document for Disability Relief at Workplaces - Case Study Example

 Policy and Procedure Document for Disability Relief at Workplaces Purpose The word disability, simply put means a physical condition that limits the major life activities of any person. About 16% of Australians within working age have disabilities. However, only a small percentage of them are actually working to survive at any given time. Furthermore only 6 percent of the total number of people receiving Disability Support Pension participated in an employment related program. According to ACOSS (2005), a major reason for the low employments rates of people with disability in Australia is that these people are less likely to receive any kind of help to procure a job, rehabilitation or training. The Australian government spends very less, that is only two thirds of the OECD average expenditure on these services provided to disabled persons. This kind of under representation of disabled persons in the labour market is bound to lead to social exclusion. The main purpose of this paper is to establish the policies and procedures for disability relief at the workplaces to enable disabled people to gain employment and to give them a chance at becoming self sufficient despite their disabilities. Disability policies face two important but contradictory goals. The first goal is to ensure that disabled people or citizens are not excluded from society as a whole. It is to ensure that they are encouraged to participate fully in economic and social life and specifically to make sure that they get a chance to engage in gainful employment so that they are not underrepresented and excluded from the labour market. The second goal is to ensure that disabled citizens have strong income security, to ensure that they are not denied the means to earn a decent living and become self sustained because of the disabilities that may restrict their potential to earn (OECD, 2003). The policies and procedures given in this document will aim to achieve the above two goals. Scope of the Policy The scope of this policy extends towards all employment units small, medium or large. Corporate organizations, factories and other companies engaging disabled people. The scope extends towards both private, public and government organizations. Enforcement Authority The primary enforcement authority is the Occupation Health and Safety Department, Australia. The secondary authority includes the head of this department and the supervisors under him. They will bring into their purview all organizations that have been registered and will call in on the organizations from time to time to ensure that the regulations are being followed. They will maintain records and prepare reports to ensure the successful implementation of the policies and accurate tracking. Definition (s) Disability – In general terms disability is a condition that in some way hampers or hinders a person’s ability to carry out day-to-day activities. The extent to which such a condition hinders a person’s activities varies from individual to individual and the range of disabilities varies from mild to severe conditions. Apart from this however many definitions of disability has been provided by many noted organizations and bodies. The World Health Organization (WHO) has provided two definitions for disability. In 1990, it “provided a framework for disability described in three dimensions, namely, impairment, disability and handicap”. In 2001, it provided a revised from of the previous definition which said that, “Disability is conceptualized as being a multidimensional experience for the person involved. There may be effects on organs or body parts and there may be effects on a person's participation in areas of life. Correspondingly, three dimensions of disability are recognized in ICF: body structure and function (and impairment thereof), activity (and activity restrictions) and participation (and participation restrictions). The classification also recognizes the role of physical and social environmental factors in affecting disability outcomes.” The Australian Bureau of Statistics 1998 survey of disability defines disability as, “as any person with a limitation, restriction or impairment which has lasted, or is likely to last, for at least six months and restricts everyday activities.” Additionally the ABS has defined self care, mobility and communication as core activities and based on these activities, they have classified levels of restriction as follows. Mild – when a person ahs no difficulty with self care, mobility or communication but uses aid or equipment Moderate – when a person does not need assistance but has difficulty with self care, mobility and communication Severe – when a person needs assistance with self care, mobility and communication sometimes Profound – when a person is unable to perform self care, mobility or communication and always needs help (McIntosh and Phillips, 2002). Workplace – A place, such as an office or a factory where people are employed. Alternatively, it may also be defined as an environment which enables people or workers to work and produce economic value. Allowance – A discount that is specially offered to a person as a result of certain specific circumstances. Disposable Income – The amount of money left to an individual after the taxes have been paid, available for spending and saving. Policy Statements 1. Discrimination against the disabled is not allowed under any circumstance at the workplace. Discrimination shall not be made by the employer with regards to giving employment to a disabled individual or by co-workers when a disabled person is working in an organization. 2. Equal career opportunities must be given to the disabled and regular employees alike with focus only on qualification, working ability and talent. 3. Discrimination shall also not be made with respect to promotional opportunities and salary raise accompanying promotions. 4. Organizations must make their buildings disabled friendly as disabled people face problems through physical barriers such as stairs, steepness of the building and lack of parking space. Organizations housing disabled people must have the following facilities specifically designed for them. People on crutches require wide passageways measuring 120cm. A disabled person accessing a car in a separate parking space needs a minimum of 120cm access zone. Entrance lobbies must be larger enough to allow easy wheelchair manoeuvre. Doorways must be wide enough to allow access to individuals in a wheelchair. The space should be wide enough for a disabled individual to propel themselves through with comfortable hand/arm space. Special toilets must be built with WC accessible from either side. Where there is danger of a person falling over, enough space must be provided for a hoist and an operator. An employee bound to a wheelchair may require a height adjustable desk unless the wheelchair fits comfortably under the table. Facilities such as toilets and parking spaces specially meant for the disabled must not be obstructed (Bojanowski, 2006). 5. Disabled persons must be given disposable incomes slightly higher than the average income range to enable them to meet the additional cost they incur due to their disability. 6. Increase in disposable income can be varied depending upon the type of functional disability. 7. The amount of fluctuation in incomes due to periods of hospitalization and absence from work must be reduced to enable them to meet their growing expenditure. Reasonable level of stability in income must be ensured. 8. Sickness allowance must be made available to disabled people who are temporarily unable to work due to a medical condition or hospitalization. 9. Mobility allowance must also be made available to disabled people who are employed as they cannot access public transport and are heavily reliant on taxis and other forms of more expensive transport. Without substantial allowance their mobility may become very restricted. 10. Pension schemes must be modified to suit the needs of disabled persons after retirement from a regular job. The Disability Support Pension must be made available to disabled employees to cope with their expenditures post retirement. 11. Risk assessment of work must be done taking into account disabled employees without any assumptions. Extra safety measures must be taken for employees with a disability in order to prevent any health or other hazards. 12. Employers and co-workers need to be supportive not overbearing and must be aware of the needs of disabled employees and ensure that their needs are met as they can contribute as much as regular employees towards the development of the organization. Disciplinary Action If any organization or employee is found by the department head or supervisors of the Occupation Health and Safety Department to be violating the above stated policies and procedures, they will be subject to one or more of the following disciplinary actions. An oral reprimand as the first warning (during or after inspection by authorities) A written reprimand as the second warning. All registered organizations and companies are answerable to the Australian Human Rights Commission. Under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992, individuals can lodge complaints of discrimination and harassment. Employees who have been victims of violation of rights can also appeal to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. Employers are liable to give monetary compensation to disabled victims, if they are proved to be violating policies. Conclusion The above policies aim to achieve the two primary but contradictory goals mentioned in the above section, namely to ensure that disabled people are encouraged to participate fully in economic and social life, especially to ensure that they get a chance to engage in gainful employment and secondly to ensure that they have income security. This will ensure that they also get a chance at a decent life despite their difficult condition. References Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) (2005). Ten Myths and Facts About The Disability Support Pension (DSP). ACOSS Paper 362. ACOSS, Redfern, NSW Bojanowski, L (2006). Workplace Requirements: Workplace Policy. Wandsworth PCT Website. Retrieved July 27, 2009. http://www.pwd.org.au/publications/SB280708SPRCConferenceDisabilityandWork.rtf. McIntosh, G and Phillips, J (2002). Disability Support and Services in Australia. Parliament of Australia. Retrieved July 27, 2009. http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/SP/disability.htm Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) (2003). Transforming Disability into Ability: Policies to Promote Work and Income Security for Disabled People. OECD Publishing, 2003 Physical Disability Council of Australia (PDCA). Review of the Age Pension, Carer Payment and Disability Support Pension. Retrieved July 27, 2009. http://www.pda.org.au/uploads/published_papers/submission%20to%20Pensions%20Review.pdf UC Santa Cruz. Guide to Writing Policy and Procedure Documents. UCSC website. Retrieved July 27, 2009. http://www.ucsc.edu/ppmanual/pdf/guide.pdf Read More