With more than 1.2 million vacancies in the UK labour market, and many employers reporting difficulties in recruiting into roles, a vast pool of talent is being overlooked amongst disabled people currently out of work. Given the right conditions and flexibility to thrive, disabled people could help alleviate shortages we see across the country. But if flexibility and autonomy aren’t adopted into workplace culture, there is a real danger we could reverse progress that has been made. Our report makes some clear recommendations as to how policy-makers and employers can work to provide the needed flexibility and support. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GOVERNMENT The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) should make flexible working the default position for all employees, with flexible options included in all job adverts While employers already have limited reasons to refuse flexible working requests that are considered reasonable adjustments for disabled workers, barriers still remain for some people who would benefit from increased access to remote, hybrid and other options. An employee must first identify as disabled, and with some employers requiring proof of disability, this can be seen as medicalising and stigmatising. Furthermore, some people would benefit from adjustments but don’t meet the Equality Act definition of disability – a particular issue for people with new or fluctuating conditions. BEIS should require large employers to publish information on their approach to flexible and hybrid working Employers with more than 250 staff should be required to publish their flexible and hybrid working policies externally, monitor take-up of flexible practices within their organisation across different worker groups, including disabled workers, and regularly publish this data along with action plans to drive improvement. Government should increase funding for the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) to enforce and protect disabled workers’ rights The Government should increase resourcing for the EHRC and widen its remit to allow it to constructively challenge employers who do not provide adjustments for disabled workers. This would allow the EHRC to increase the volume and visibility of its enforcement work, boosting compliance, serving as a strong deterrent, and making it worthwhile for people to report rights violations. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) should reformAccess toWork, providing better funding and resourcing DWP should focus on streamlining processes, and provide a step-by-step guide which outlines the different stages, the expected timescales, and explain who is responsible for what at each stage of an application. This would increase understanding among applicants and employers, and could reduce stress on the applicant and the likelihood of deadlines being missed. The DWP should refresh the Disability Confident Scheme to reflect our changing working lives Government is reviewing the Disability Confident Scheme. This presents an opportunity to develop a more ambitious approach that is better aligned with current ways of working. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EMPLOYERS Invest in training and supporting line managers Employers should ensure managers are equipped to run hybrid teams so they are productive and inclusive, regardless of where and when they are working. Managers need to be empowered to think flexibly and creatively in responding to flexible working and adjustment requests, and equipped with the tools and confidence to “have the conversation” and ask every employee what they need to be their most productive. Consultation The importance of autonomy is clear, so it is vital decisions about hybrid working practices are not made via a top-down approach. Consultation should be a continuous exercise to better adjust conditions and help workers be more productive. Workplace adjustment passports for all Adjustment passports are a valuable tool to record and communicate needs and preferences about how and where we work. Using these for all workers has been widely welcomed and seen as a way of destigmatising the adjustment request process. Explore wider forms of flexibility Not all jobs can be done remotely, and as our research highlights not everyone wants to work in this way. Employers should embrace the positive changes many experienced during the pandemic and act towards supporting the full spectrum of flexible work, including job-sharing, flexitime and compressed hours. Heather Taylor is a Policy Analyst with TheWork Foundation. The full report The Changing Workplace: Enabling DisabilityInclusive HybridWorking, by Heather Taylor, Rebecca Florisson, Melanie Wilkes and Paula Holland, was commissioned by City Bridge Trust, the City of London Corporation’s charity funder. h.taylor11@lancaster.ac.uk FIFTY FOUR DEGREES | 13
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