Disability Action Plan

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Contents

Disability Champion’s Foreword

Introduction

Aim

Objectives

Initiatives that the Department will adopt

Governance

Meeting obligations

Actions

Disability Action Plan

Disability Champion’s Foreword

It gives me great pleasure to introduce the first Disability Action Plan (the plan) for the Department of Employment.

We know from the evidence people with disability make great employees. The research shows people with disability tend to stay longer in a job, have fewer days off work and fewer workplace accidents. However, they also have skills and attributes that can be overlooked, even if inadvertently.

Our Department is committed to building organisational-wide capability that supports people with disability to achieve their potential. This goal is an essential component of our Diversity Strategy and requires the application of some fundamental principles.

Through our flexible workplace practices, we are committed also to supporting those in our organisation who care for people with disability.

Understanding the laws protecting people from disability discrimination are an important first step. The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 covers a range of areas, including the responsibility of employers to ensure people with disability are treated equitably in the workplace.

Learning the language of disability is vital to ensuring people with disability feel valued and included at work. For example, placing the person before the disability allows the conversation to focus on what a person with disability can do, rather than any impairment.

Ensuring people with disability are given equitable access – to premises, events, information and development opportunities, and promotions – is all of our responsibility.

This Disability Action Plan aims to ensure our Department:

respects and values people with disability, and carers, for their contribution to the workplace
treats people with disability fairly at all times
provides opportunities to advance in their work and career
has better representation of people with disability across the organisation.

The plan forms part of the Department’s people priorities as outlined in the People and Capability Strategy. These priorities will ensure our people have the support they need to achieve the Department’s vision of More Jobs. Great Workplaces.

It also links in with our Strategic Plan, which outlines our commitment to delivering on the Government’s priorities, emphasises our forward-looking and collaborative nature, and puts people at the core of our business.

I commend this plan to all employees and encourage each of you to play your part in contributing to its successful implementation.

Helen Willoughby

Disability Champion

Introduction

1Increasing the representation of people with disability in the workforce, as outlined in the Australian Public Service (APS) As One Disability Employment Strategy, is an APS-wide focus which responds to the National Disability Strategy 2010-2020.

2However, like many Australian Government departments and despite some success through targeted recruitment strategies, the Department of Employment has seen a decline in the representation of people with disability in its workforce. There is also a significant gap between employees formally disclosing through the Department’s HR system, and employees identifying as with disability responding to the APS Employee Census.

3The Department of Employment has a strong commitment to an organisational culture that encourages and supports diversity. It is also bound by the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 to treat people with disability equitably in the workplace, and to provide any support and reasonable adjustments they require to perform their role to the best of their abilities. More information about managers’responsbilities to support people with disability can be found in the Department’s Reasonable Adjustment Policy.

4TheDisability Action Plan, in conjunction with the Department’s Diversity Strategy and the People and Capability Strategy, demonstrates our commitment to be an employer of choice for people with disability and for those who care for people with disability.

Aim

5The aim of theplan is to develop a culture of support and respect in the Department for people with disability – one that reflects a person’s contribution and ability, and allows for reasonable adjustments to be made to maximise their contribution.

6The plan is designed to build capability among all our people – whether they are with disability, or managing, working with, or being supervised by people with disabilty – to:

raise employees’ understanding of the legislative obligations and requirements regarding disability in the workplace
respect and value the contribution people with disability make to our Department
provide access, systems and tools to allow people to perform their role to the best of their ability at all times
ensure fair treatment of people with disability when new opportunities, including promotions, become available
build upon recruitment and retention strategies to lift the representation of people with disability in the Department, and to keep them engaged.

7To help achieve this, the Department has appointed a Disability Champion and established a Disability Employee Network (DEN) as its primary advisory body to the Executive on matters affecting people with disability.

8The Department will engage the services of the Australian Network on Disability (AND) to assist in developing resources for managers and employees.

Objectives

9The Department will seek to provide a level playing field, from recruitment to career progression, for people with disability by:

raising the awareness and understanding of disability issues and workplace legislation amongst employees and managers to instil disability confidence. This will improve leadership across the Department, promote a positive work environment where people with disability are fully supported, and ensure applicants with disability receive fair treatment and are considered on the basis of their relevant skills and experience.
ensuring our systemic processes are effective and efficient in assisting and supporting employees with disability, and for those who care for people with disability. We will seek to increase the representation of people with disability in the Department and ensure high levels of employee engagement.

10The Department will consider the views of our employees with disability across a range of issues including:

access to reasonable adjustment and support to assist employees to perform at their best

career pathways and access to training and development opportunities
the effectiveness of disability-related systemic processes, policies and initiatives
the accessibility of recruitment processes
strategies to further lift the representation of people with disability in the workplace.

Initiatives that the Department will adopt

11Demonstrate leadership across the Department through:

the Secretary’s membership on the Diversity Council, working with other agency heads to reinforce and reinvigorate the commitment of APS leadership on diversity and strengthen the APS as an employer of people from diverse backgrounds

the Disability Champion raising awareness of disability and creating a culture of respect and support, as well as representing the Department on the Australian Public Service Commission’s (APSC) Disability Champion’s Network
the Executive leading by example to promote disability awareness and understanding among staff
canvassing mentoring arrangements with senior staff
the Disability Employee Network acting on behalf of employees with disability and carers of people with disability.

12Build manager and employee capability by:

developing a variety of resources and tools for managers to assist them to support employees with disability, including eLearning programmes

offering training, including mental health awareness, disability awareness, disability etiquette and the requirements of relevant workplace legislation
running seminars and workshops to highlight best practice and encourage innovation.

13Raise awareness and understanding of disability issues amongst employees through:

celebrating various events such as International Day of People with Disability and Mental Health Month

conducting an employee interview series
running disability-focussed panel events
creating employee profiles to share with employees
publishing disability-related good news stories.

14Ensure systemic processes are efficient and effective by:

making information available on reasonable adjustments and assistive technology, including workplace legislative requirements

promoting the Employment Assistance Fund
identifying reasonable adjustment and assistive technology requirements early and providing ongoing support
aligning processes and procedures with Information and Communication Technology, Work Health Safety and desktop support
participating in the Inter-agency Accessibility Support Unit and Community of Practice.

15Improving attraction, recruitment and retention of employees with disability by:

participating in the Australian Public Service Commission’s RecruitAbility scheme
ensuring early identification of people with disability through e-recruit
participating in the Stepping Into programme
advertising entry level programmes in relevant media and in accessible formats
providing awareness of training for recruitment panels
ensuring employees with disability and carers are consulted through the Disability Employee Network
ensuring the Department is an accessible workplace for all employees.

Governance

16The Department is responsible for promoting workplace diversity principles by upholding and promoting the APS Values and Code of Conduct, and is heldaccountable for this responsibility through various mechanisms, including:

the Department of Employment Annual Report

the APSC Annual State of the Service Report
the views of our employees with disability as reported in the APS Employee Census.

17We will maintain an ongoing connection with the relevant national bodies in the disability sector including AND, the National Disability Recruitment Coordinator (NDRC), Disability Employment Australia (DEA), and the National Disability Services (NDS). Access to these bodies provides an opportunity for the Department to use the expertise of their Executive and members to identify best practice for working with staff with disability.

18The Department actively participates in APS-wide initiatives and works in partnership with the APSC on disability initiatives. The Secretary engages with her fellow members of the Diversity Council and its associated networks.

19The Disability Champion position is held at the SES Band 2 level. The role encourages and supports the Department’s employees to develop and implement a culture of support for people with disability and to champion their inclusion.

20The Disability Employee Network contributes to building the Department’s disability confidence by assisting with the support, development and retention of people with disability through awareness raising, mentoring and consultation.

21A key focus of the Diversity Unit in People Branch is to develop solutions for employees with disability by offering centralised support for those employees, their colleagues and managers.

Meeting obligations

22The plan is consistent with the requirements and recommendations of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992.

23The plan will be reviewed on a regular basis in consultation with the People and Capability Committee (PCC), including for the purpose of ensuring that its objectives and activities do not contain any discriminatory practices.

Disability Action Plan

Actions

Activity / Proposed Tasks / Indicators of Success / Responsibility / Timeline
Raise awareness and understanding of disability issues amongst employees;
build manager capability;
ensure systemic processes are efficient and effective /

Review and if necessary improve the resources and tools available to managers so they can support people with disability. Draw on expertise of the Australian Network on Disability to assist.
Raise disability awareness in Employment National Office and State Network with events including: International Day of People with Disability; disability etiquette; interview series; and panel events.
Promote a positive work environment by addressing accessibility and language so people with disability are fully included in the workplace.
Provide training for our managers/employees to improve their confidence and understanding of disability, including obligations under workplace legislation.
Close the gap between those employees that identify anonymously in the APS Employee Census as with disability but do not disclose in Connect.

New resources are available to both assist people with disability and staff to better understand what they need to do to support and manage people with disability, including understanding their obligations under workplace legislation.
Disability events receive a high level of participation and awareness of disability among all staff is increased.
Training is either well attended or mandated.
The Department’s disclosure rate better aligns with the APS Employee Census disability response rate and results reflect increased engagement.

/ Diversity Unit
Disability
Champion
Disability Employee Network
Web Accessibility
L&D Team / Ongoing schedule of training and awareness activities to be developed and updated yearly.
Evaluation of staff census results link to the indicators of success by
1 July2015.
Attract, recruit and retain employees with disability /

Employment’s recruitment processes reviewed and barriers for people with disability removed.
Participate in the APSC’s As One RecruitAbility scheme, and evaluate and communicate results.
Provide awareness training for recruitment panels on reasonable adjustment and the diverse needs of applicants with disability.

Employment has a reputation as being an employer of choice for people with disability.
Increase in number of people with disability applying for positions in Employment.
Retention levels for employees with disability remain stable or increase.
People with disability are better represented in Department, either through increased numbers or the provision of more opportunity, including recognition and promotion.

/ Diversity Unit
Recruitment Team
Entry Level Programmes Team
Work Health and Safety Team
Property Team / Recruitment processes reviewed (completed)
RecruitAbility pilot launched on 31Aug 2013, now ongoing across all agencies
Initial Awareness training for recruitment panels to be completed by the NDRC (completed)
Improve leadership across Employment /

Establish the Disability Employee Network as the primary advisory body to the Executive and to act on behalf of employees with disability.
Establish voluntary mentoring programme along lines of successful Indigenous mentoring model.
Disability Champion to raise awareness of disability within Employment and create a culture of support.
Executive demonstrate leadership in promoting and raising awareness of disability.

Sustained membership in the Disability Employee Network with measurable outcomes from meetings.
Secretary representation on the APS Diversity Council.
Disability Champion representation on the APS Diversity Council Champions’ Network.
Increased participation by the Disability Champion in disability events outside of National Office.
Mentoring arrangements are in place and there is reasonable take up.

/ Secretary
Disability Champion
Disability Employee Network
Diversity Unit / Ongoing