As
from the 1st October 1999 Part 3 of the Discrimination Act came
into force.
Amongst other things, this part of the Act relates to reasonable
adjustments that service providers have to make to ensure access
by disabled people to their services. This includes, for example,
providing poor sighted people with information in large print,
braille or tape or hard of hearing people with written information
or providing wheelchair access and allowing guide dogs onto premises.
Other responsibilities for an employer include providing
supervision, modifying instructions or reference manuals so that
they are for example in large print or braille, allowing absences
from work / rehabilitation related to an employee's disability,
modifying or purchasing new equipment to meet a disabled employee's
needs.
Any such adjustments must be reasonable, bearing in mind, amongst
other things, the cost to the employer, the disruption it will
cause and the effectiveness it will have in removing or preventing
any disadvantage to the disabled employee.
Any employees who believe that they have been the subject of discrimination
can apply to an Employment Tribunal within 3 months of the date
of the discrimination.
The Employment Tribunal can:
1. Make a declaration about the rights of the
disabled employee.
2. Order the employer to pay compensation to the
disabled employee.
3. Recommend that the employer take reasonable
action within a certain
period of time to prevent or reduce any disadvantage to the
disabled person or to make reasonable adjustments.
What's in the DDA pack? more...
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