What is the Disability Discrimination Act?

The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) is aimed to prevent discrimination occuring against disabled people. In effect, when someone treats a disabled person less favourably, without justification, for a reason relating to their disability, discrimination occurs.

Discrimination also occurs if, without justification a “reasonable adjustment” is not made that effects a disabled persons employment status. The Act applies to employers and all those who provide goods, facilities and services to the public (known as service providers).

The Disability Discrimination Act requires virtually ALL businesses and public sector organisations to take positive action to ensure that their services are fully accessable to disabled people.

Therfore should you have no means to inform hearing-impaired employees/visitors as to the activation of the fire alarm, this contravenes the Disability Discrimination Act. Placing your company in a vulnerable position to claims and prosecution, should you employ or receive on your premises, a hearing impaired person.

The reliance on a manual system or “buddy” is considered as discrimination and does not offer a failsafe or satisfactory system for alerting visitors.

Disability Discrimination Act 1995
Advice and the full details can be obtained by contacting The Disability Discrimination Act help line:
DDA Help
Freepost MIDO2164
Strafford-upon-Avon
CV37 9BR
Telephone: 0345 622 633
Faxback Service: 0345 622 611
Textphone: 0345 622 644 1

Since 2 December 1996, it has been unlawful to treat disabled people less favourably or provide a lower standard of service for a reason related to their disability.

Since October 1999 Service Providers have also had to make "reasonable adjustments" for disabled people to the way they provide their services. The adjustments are to:

• Change policies, procedures and practices.
• Provide auxiliary aids, e.g. an induction loop to help deaf customers.
• Provide service by an alternative means if service is physically inaccessible.

From 1st October 2004, the final stage of the goods, facilities and services provisions in Part III of the Act will come into force. All physical barriers for disabled people will have to be removed. Service providers may have to consider making permanent physical alterations to their premises if there are no reasonable means of making their business fully accessible to the disabled.

The employment provisions of the Act currently applies to employers with 15 or more staff. As of 1st October 2004 this will also apply to small employers with less than 15 staff.

Duties under Part III have been introduced in three stages:

• Disability Discrimination Act Part I - Definition of Disability Disability
• Discrimination Act Part II - Employment Provisions Disability Discrimination
• Act Part III - Access to Goods and Services

Employment provisions apply to employers with 15 or more employees. The provisions, including those that encourage an employer to make physical adjustments to their premises have been in force since December 1996.

An employer may discriminate against an employee or job applicant by:-

• Treating the disbled person less favourably (without justification) than other employees or job applicants because of a disability
• Not making reasonable adjustments (without justification)

When does the DDA come into effect?
The employment rights and first rights of access came into force 2nd December 1996. Further rights of access came into force on 1st October 1999 and the final rights of access comes into force later this year as of 1st October 2004.

What happens if discrimination occurs?
Employers may be taken to an employment tribunal whereby if it is found that discrimination has occured, compensation will be paid to the disabled employee or job applicant.

For service providers the disabled individual concerned may make a complaint to the organisation or they may choose to take advice from the Disability Right Commission which has a conciliation service and may be able to broker an agreement.

In some instances the individual may take civil proceedings against the organisation and should the court rule that discrimination has occured the service provider may be required to pay damages for any financial loss, including injury to feelings. It is also possible that the disabled person could seek an injunction to prevent the service provider from repeating the discriminatory act in the future.

The Act defines a disabled person as someone with a “physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”.