Sickness Absence Policies and Disability Related Sickness Absence

Over 5 years ago in 2005, the Government’s Strategy Unit published a far-reaching paper called ‘Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People’. This report, largely welcomed by trade unions, laid out an ambitious objective of ending discrimination against disabled people in Britain by the year 2025, twenty years later? A quarter of the way into […]

Changes to Access to Work Support

This conference is concerned about severe restrictions which have been placed on the support offered to disabled employees by Access to Work in recent changes starting October 1st. The great majority of funding for “physical adjustments” such as equipment, telephony, adaptations to buildings and similar will no longer be provided. The cost will now be […]

Disabled Members and the anti-cuts campaign

Conference notes that the Comprehensive Spending Review announced on October 20th will have a devastating effect on disabled people. With local government losing more than a quarter of its funding over the next four years, disabled people and their families are likely to see their services and support drastically affected. Conference believes that now more […]

AXING OUR RIGHTS

This Conference is deeply concerned at the coalition government’s announcement on Friday 13th August of its decision to axe the Audit Commission. The Commission has played an important role in promoting the employment rights and public service provision to disabled people by those public authorities that are covered by the Disability Equality Duty. Our greatest […]

STOP THE SURVEILLANCE OF DISABLED PEOPLE’S BENEFITS AND SPENDING POWER – DEMAND CRIMINALISATION OF INDIVIDUAL AND CORPORATE TAX FRAUDSTERS

This conference is gravely concerned about reports on 10 August 2010 that government intends to use credit rating firms to target disabled people claiming benefits by using intelligence about what disabled people choose to spend their benefit on. We see this latest attack as another bounty hunter initiative that could cost billions of pounds to […]

STRETCHING TARGETS FOR DISABLED EMPLOYEES SO THEY REFLECT THE POPULATON

This Conference is concerned that disabled people may become the first casualties of current job cuts in the public sector. Conference is also concerned that disabled service users will suffer if there are less disabled people employed in the public sector. It is very unusual for any workforce to reflect the percentage of the population […]

RESTRICTIONS IN CAR USER ALLOWANCES AND ACCESSIBLE VEHICLES

This Conference is concerned that many employers are cutting the mileage they will pay for disabled people who use their own vehicle for work purposes. We recognise that campaigns for the reduction in car usage and limiting the engine size that can be used for work purposes to 1000cc promotes the climate change agenda. However […]

ACCESS TO VOTING AND POLLING STATIONS FOR DISABLED PEOPLE

This Conference will be concerned that many people were unable to exercise their right to vote in the 2010 elections as they were turned away on the day. Sometimes disabled people don’t get the opportunity to be turned away by the polling officer despite the duty in the Electoral Administration Act 2006 for local authorities […]

ACCESS TO WORK AND THE RIGHT TO CONTROL

This Conference is alarmed at the reports of disabled members being denied the right to control their Access to Work packages in the workplace. We are only too aware of the ignorance from some disabled people about how our conditions and impairments affect us, we are also concerned that non disabled people do not fully […]

DISABLED PEOPLE AND THE RECESSION

This conference is appalled about the savage cuts in public services and the impact on our members’ jobs. Disabled members express their extreme frustration at the media’s failure to portray the tax and spending debate as the lifeline to disabled people’s independence but instead focus a negative representation of disabled people as a burden on […]

FIT NOTES AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PLANS (PDP)

This conference is concerned that the new system for recording workplace sickness absence ‘Fit Notes’ is not providing adequate support to disabled women who are returning to work after periods of absence. In particular we are concerned that some parts of the medical profession fail to understand how public service workplaces are organised, the negotiated […]

HIDDEN BUT STILL HERE

Research has discovered that where you used to live could affect your child’s chances of being Autistic. The studies looked at children whose mothers had moved to the UK. From outside Europe too showed an increased risk of Autism in children whose parents had migrants from the Caribbean, Asia and Africa. The group with the […]

CREATING A FAIRER SOCIO ECONOMIC SOCIETY FOR DISABLED BLACK PEOPLE

Conference notes with deep concern the extent black people experience common mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. Regrettably the recent government announcement on the future of Disability Living Allowance and the welfare system could lead to significant mental illness as the majority of disabled Black people remain socially deprived and economically disadvantaged. It […]

ACCESS TO DEMOCRACY

Conference believes that experiences of disabled voters, especially at the General Election 2010, expose many barriers that can disenfranchise a disabled voter. In particular we are concerned that the Mental Health Act 1983 bans people who have been sectioned under the Act from standing as Parliamentary candidates in elections. Given the disproportionately high rate of […]

BENEFITS AND DISABLED WOMEN

In line with Dave Prentis’ press release declaring war on public service cuts, we are shocked this administration is introducing draconian cuts to government departmental budgets that will negatively and disproportionately affect disabled women. Of particular concern is the announcement that existing Disability Living Allowance (DLA) claimants will have to undergo medical checks to continue […]