https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gz9njvj43o
As a person with a mechanical condition (dodgy neck) that is classed as a disability under the Disability Discrimination Act, I am well familiar with the search for non-existent part time jobs that might fit around my physical limitations.
It’s unbelievable that neither Government (nor Job Centre) had not foreseen that a lack of suitable situations was always going to be a major stumbling block to whittling down disability benefits by getting people with physical limitations back into the workplace.
Employers shell out almost as much in taxes/on costs for a part timer as they do for a full-time member of staff so naturally, they’re not going to want to take on anyone that’s not providing value for money. That's why many are so keen on robots.
Ask your boss for time off to attend medical appointments then step back to observe their body language. Whilst sympathy might ooze out verbally, facial expressions tell otherwise. You can almost hear their thoughts – not another visit to the … (insert relevant medical department). God that’s the third one this month!
Being a person with physical limitations then I’m obliged to disclose all my ills on every application form/medical questionnaire during the recruitment process for fear of leading prospective employers up the garden path. What I’d really love to say in support of my case is that I’m keen, hard-working, rarely take time off sick in relation to my dodgy neck or hands but I just can’t sit and type for 7 hours a day like other people can. All I need is a chance to prove myself. Of course, having done the decent up-front disclosure thingy I suspect my application form just ends up in the circular file (bin).
If the NHS found ways of fixing all of us mechanically maligned peeps then we’d be more than fit for duty but musculoskeletal disorders are way down their list of priorities even though they are probably the most common reason for people with physical limitations not taking up employment opportunities.
Employers might be more inclined to take us on if they were offered a financial incentive rather like an apprenticeship levy to make up for lost productivity due to medical appointments or flare ups. Since the Government have blown their budget then I can’t see there being a disability premium given to businesses so they can take on less-than-perfect workers.
I’d even go as far as saying that there is likely to be a statistical correlation between money spent on fixing sick people and unemployment. The less you spend on repairing the workforce, the greater the incapacity of workers resulting in higher benefit expenditure.
Rather than berating employers for not taking on people with physical limitations or suggesting that we’re all work dodgers, it would be better to get all those AI super computers to analyse the underlying health causes of benefit claimants then task them to come up with more effective ways of sorting out those problems. Once you’ve crunched the data, you might then begin to put together an effective plan to boost employment amongst the disabled community.
Otherwise, I can't see it getting any better. Can you?
No comments:
Post a Comment