Recruiting and employing disabled people

When an employee becomes disabled

There are sound business reasons for retaining an employee who becomes disabled. It is typically more cost-efficient to retain an employee who has become disabled rather than recruit and train a new person.

You may need to make reasonable adjustments to the premises and to the disabled employee's job description to enable them to continue in their job. These include:

• offering them a phased return to work, part-time work or flexible working times
• providing extra or more flexible rest breaks
• considering homeworking to avoid the need for travel
• allocating to other staff the tasks that the employee can no longer carry out
• carrying out necessary adjustments to make your premises more accessible to them
• offering them an alternative employment/position
• providing practical aids and technical equipment that helps them in their job

The Access to Work scheme may be able to provide you with funding or help in organising aids and adjustments to your business premises. Read about the Access to Work scheme on the Jobcentre Plus website.

Talk to your local Disability Employment Adviser for further advice on retaining an employee who becomes disabled. Search for your local Jobcentre Plus office on the Jobcentre Plus website.

It is important to understand the distinction between illness and disability. Illness can be defined as a short-term incapacity. The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 defines a disabled person as someone who has, or has had, a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial, long-term - 12 months or more - adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.

If someone claims to be disabled according to the definition applied by the Act, it may be best practice to assume that this is the case. For further guidance, download the DRC's revised code of practice for employers from the Disability Rights Commission website (PDF).

Subjects covered in this guide

• Introduction
• The business case for employing disabled people
• Advice on disability and funding for employers
• Recruiting disabled people to work for your business
• Helping disabled employees in your business
• When an employee becomes disabled
• What the law says on employing disabled staff

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