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In this section: |
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An Important Note About Definitions and Descriptions
Before examining the terminology and descriptions of disabilities, it is helpful to consider the following:
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There are over three million people with a disability in Australia and over one million of these are of working age. The degree and effects of these disabilities are as numerous as the people who have them. |
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Descriptive terms and definitions can help us to communicate by referring to something in a way that conveys an agreed meaning. Care should be taken, however, not to assume that individuals with a particular disability are always the same as each other.
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For example some people with a double leg amputation have difficulty walking, others have run 100 metres in just 11.34 seconds - two seconds outside the Olympic record. |
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Definitions that aid diagnostic processes - and through which clinicians identify important aspects of a particular disability - are not appropriate in the workplace.
In recruitment it is essential that a person's individual characteristics, such as their skills, abilities and ambitions, influence the employer's decision-making, rather than any label or definition.
Disability, Illness and the Workplace
While the focus of this Resource is on providing information to help employers and managers provide inclusive workplaces and appropriate supports for employees with disabilities, situations also arise where any employee could be facing the impact of illnesses or disorders on their ability to carry out their duties.
In any workplace, there is the possibility that workers can develop serious illness that may cause temporary or more permanent disability. In most instances, after the acute phase of the illness has passed, the employee can return to normal employment. In some instances, however, they may need temporary adjustments so that they can carry out their duties. In others, the illness may recur or may be one which involves the expectation of gradual deterioration.
Below is a list of disability types, including:
- descriptions of the most common disabilities
- common myths associated with particular disabilities
- suggested strategies for interacting positively with people with disabilities
- approaches to making appropriate workplace adjustments.
< Back to Types of Disabilities
