Today, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Liz Kendall, presented the Government’s White Paper plan to ‘Get Britain Working’ to Parliament. This sets out how the Government plans to tackle unemployment and economic inactivity.
What does the plan include?
- An independent review into the role of UK employers in promoting healthy and inclusive workplaces.
- Recognising and strengthening the link between employment and health.
- Launching a new jobs and careers service to support people into work.
- A guarantee for all 18 to 21-year-olds to have access to education, training or help finding a job or apprenticeship.
- Increased funding for support tailored to local needs.
Independent review into UK employers
RNID welcome the new independent review, and its aim to increase the recruitment and retention of disabled people and prevent people becoming unwell at work.
There are 12 million deaf people and people with hearing loss in employment, who we know face significant barriers to finding and staying in work. This is especially true for British Sign Language (BSL) users – one in three of whom are neither in work nor looking for work.
Our ‘It Does Matter’ report found that 32% of BSL users and 18% of deaf people report experiencing negative attitudes from managers at work, which demonstrates the need for employers to be better informed about how to support deaf and disabled workers.
We have been calling for Government to significantly reform and improve employment support and we would urge Government to consider our calls in their review:
- Improve the provision of information and support for employers by setting up a Disability Employers Hub – a central port of information and guidance related to recruiting, retaining and supporting disabled people in employment.
- Reform the Disability Confident scheme and provide firmer incentives for employers to progress, and ensure this translates into tangible change for disabled people.
- Tackle the significant Access to Work backlog, allow offers in principle for jobseekers, and better promote the scheme to improve uptake.
RNID look forward to engaging with the independent panel on this review.
Link between health and employment
The announcement also recognised the impact of health conditions and poor access to NHS services on people’s ability to work.
This is particularly welcome as RNID know that hearing loss and deafness are a contributing factor to people deciding to retire.
The Government plans to support the NHS to provide extra appointments and reduce waiting lists in areas with the highest economic inactivity due to poor health. We would like to see these plans expanded to ensure that better management of hearing loss is included.
Reforming health and disability benefits
Government also repeated their plans to consult on reforming health and disability benefits, including PIP and the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) and pledged to keep the voices of disabled people at the heart of any policy changes.
RNID will respond to the consultation when it launches in spring 2025 using the insight we gathered from our supporters earlier this year about their experiences of PIP and accessing benefits.
PIP is a benefit available to people with disabilities and long-term health conditions regardless of if they are employed or unemployed. Any reforms to this vital support should recognise the extra costs faced by disabled people and not penalise people in employment.
Responding to the White Paper, Teri Devine, Associate Director of Inclusion and Employment said:
“RNID welcome today’s announcement of much needed reform to employment support, in particular, the Government’s pledge to review employer practices towards disabled people and deepen the link between health and employment. This is vital given the impact poor access to healthcare and long waiting lists have on people who want to access work.
“We want to see the views of deaf and disabled people at the centre of this process, and make sure their experiences inform the changes to employment support made by Government.”
Get involved
Find out more about your rights at work and available support.
If you would like to share your experience of accessing healthcare as someone who is deaf or has hearing loss, please take part in our current survey.
