Web Resources and Statistics

The following are a range of resources available to employers and people with a disability:

New Resources

• A Manager's Guide to Mental Health in the Workplace - hard copies available soon
• Assistive Technology Employer Resource Kit - a 2010 NDCO resource
• Employers Toolkit - interactive CD-Rom - available from the NDCO

Websites and Resources

• JobAccess - a one-stop shop for employers, co-workers, and people with a disability. The website is supported by a free professional telephone advice service - call 1800 464 800
• Opportunity (PDF 1.7 MB) - booklet produced by the Australian Network on Disability (AND) which articulates the business case for including people with disability as employees and customers
• How to Interview a Person with a Disability
• Benefits of Employing People with a Disability  
• The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Design and Construction for Access - Australian Human Rights Commission website which helps you check the accessibility and design of your work environment
• Communicating with People with a Disability - an easy to read booklet
• Choosing Your Path: Disclosure, It's a Personal Decision - when to disclose, rights and responsibilities! A resource for employers, educators, and people with a disability
• Workplace Modifications Scheme - on the JobAccess website
• Conciliated Outcomes - Employment - Australian Human Rights Commission website

Disability Facts and Statistics

Source: Diversity@work website and Australian Network on Disability website

• Almost 4 million Australians have a disability - that's 1 in 5
• 2.2 million Australians of working age (15-64) have a disability
• A disability is any condition that restricts a person's mental, sensory or mobility functions. It could be caused by accident, trauma, genetics or disease
• A disability may be temporary or permanent, total or partial, lifelong or acquired, visible or invisible.
• The majority - 88% - of disabilities are invisible
• 1 in 5 Australians will experience a mental health problem at some point in their lives
• In 2003, 53.2% of people with a disability participated in the labour force compared to 80.6% of people without a disability.
• The Disability Discrimination Act (1992) requires employers to provide adjustments whenever it is necessary, possible and reasonable to do so - these adjustments could be any administrative, physical, or procedural accommodations made in a workplace to enable a person with a disability to work effectively, such as an enlarged computer screen or flexible hours.
• Australian research indicates that 86% of all such adjustments cost less than $500 and most can be implemented quickly. Government financial assistance may also be available to employers in some cases.
• Percentage of Australians with a disability in 1981 - 15%
• Percentage of Australians with a disability in 1998 - 19%
• Percentage of Australians with a disability in 2003 - 20%
• 3.2 million people say they are restricted in carrying out one or more daily activities, such as self care, mobility and communication.  
• People with disabilities have disposable income of $54 billion per annum