Too many
employers are still ignorant of the provisions in the Disability Discrimination
Act as it approaches its fourth anniversary next month, the Institute of
Employment Rights has claimed.
IER
director Carolyn Jones says the report highlights failings in the Act, and she
has put forward 11 recommendations for reforms, including calling for details
of any disability claims to be reported to shareholders in company annual
reports.
"In
the light of our research into the case law surrounding the operation of the
Act to date, we believe a number of important reforms are needed to make the
Act fully effective," said Jones.
The report
also shows that disabled staff are also uncertain about the Act and this is
preventing them from taking action against employers who discriminate against
them.
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More than
8.5 million people in the UK are disabled, but only about one in 10 are in
employment. In the four years since the Disability Discrimination Act was
launched, only 12 per cent of claims lodged concerned recruitment.
