In This Section Introduction How do you negotiate making changes to the workplace with an employer? Know your rights and responsibilities under disability legislation Know what work related adjustents you may need in the workplace Develop a plan Record the plan Difficulties in negotiating workplace adjustments Further Reading

Introduction

As a person with a disability, you may need to negotiate with your employer or prospective employer about making some changes to accommodate your disability. These changes, called 'reasonable adjustments' or 'work related adjustments', may be required for your job interview (eg interview questions to be provided in an alternative format, an accessible room, or via a sign language interpreter), and/or once you are in the job.

Both the NSW Anti-Discrimination Act (1977) and the Federal Disability Discrimination Act (1992) require employers to provide reasonable adjustments or work related adjustments so that you can get a job and show that you can do the job, provided these will not cause hardship to the employer (such as costing too much).

'Reasonable adjustments' or 'work-related adjustments' may be relevant to any stage in employment including:

• during the selection process (application process and job interview)
• in the initial weeks of employment (induction, support, training)
• on the job
• in response to changes in the job (e.g. additional training, changes to workplace procedures and equipment).

Examples of 'reasonable adjustments' or 'work related adjustments' include:

• changes to recruitment and interview procedures (e.g. making the interview questions available in different formats: plain English, electronic, large print)
• changes to the work environment (e.g. making the work areas and facilities accessible to a worker in a wheelchair)
• changes to job design, work schedules or other work practices (e.g. flexibility with leave arrangements to enable a worker to attend medical appointments)
• changes to equipment (e.g. installing visual fire alarms for deaf workers)
• providing training or other help (e.g. extending training time for workers with a learning disability or intellectual disability)
• changing communication systems or information provided (eg having information available in written form and not just spoken at meetings)
• flexibility around hours of work (eg starting and finishing work later to enable a worker to work at the best time when their medication does not impact on the job)

NOTE: For the purposes of this document, we have referred to the term 'work related adjustments' only. This term also includes the term 'reasonable adjustments'.

How Do You Negotiate Making Changes to the Workplace with An Employer?

Here is a step by step guide to assist you if you need to negotiate making work related adjustments to any or all areas of employment:

1. Know your Rights and Responsibilities Under Disability Legislation

It is against Federal and State law to discriminate against someone on the basis of their disability. Both the Federal Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) (1992) and the NSW Anti Discrimination Act (ADA)(1977) aim to protect people with disabilities from discriminatory treatment in a range of areas including employment, education and access to services, facilities and public areas.

Disability legislation makes it unlawful to discriminate against people with disabilities in employment, including recruitment, terms and conditions of employment, and dismissal or termination.

It is important to understand what your rights and responsibilities are under disability legislation, especially within employment. The best time to investigate this is before you start looking for a job. Understanding your rights and responsibilities under disability legislation will assist you to be:

• empowered, particularly when you have to negotiate work related adjustments with an employer
• reasonable in negotiating work related adjustments with an employer
• aware if you are being treated in a discriminatory way by an employer
• informed about the processes that should occur to implement the work related adjustments you require in the workplace.

You should also gain an understanding of Privacy and Confidentiality legislation as well as Occupation Health and Safety legislation.

2. Know What Work Related Adjustments You May Need in the Workplace

You are the best person to know what your needs are to determine what work related adjustments you may need. An employer will not know what your needs are and so will be seeking information and guidance from you. If you are not sure what your needs are in a workplace then you may need to:

• Meet with your teachers and/or TAFE Disability Teacher Consultant and/or TAFE Counselling and Careers Service, to discuss what work related adjustments you may need. They may be able to refer back to your experiences at school and TAFE to help you determine what work related adjustments you may need.
• Talk with disability service providers such as Disability Employment Network Service Providers and disability community and advocacy services. These services are experienced in identifying and negotiating work related adjustments on behalf of people with disabilities.
• Reflect on your previous work experiences or voluntary work to determine what work related adjustments suited you.
• Talk with other people with disabilities to find out what type of work related adjustments they negotiated.
• Check out the internet to read about work related adjustments and how people with disabilities successfully negotiated the changes they needed to the workplace. Search under 'Reasonable Adjustments' or 'Work Related Adjustments'.

Once you have got an idea about what work related adjustments you may require in the workplace, then you will need to:

• Make a list of a number of alternative work related adjustment options that you need such as assistive technology to access a computer. Investigate a number of other software products that you may not have previously considered but which may be a better solution in the workplace.
• Get an idea about what is reasonable and what is not. You may think that it is reasonable to ask for every Friday off so that you can attend doctors appointments but your employer may consider it more reasonable to take a day off a month and structure all your appointments in that day.
• Investigate an estimate of costs for any adjustments you may need such as the cost to purchase assistive technology, hardware solutions, office furniture etc.
• Investigate any funding sources that you or your employer may be able to access to assist in implementing work related adjustments. Organisations such as disability advocacy, information and support services, and community organisations such as Rotary or Lions Club's may be able to assist. The Workplace Modifications Scheme and Technology Assistance Schemes may also be of assistance to you.

Once you have completed Step 2, you will have a general idea about:

• the type of work related adjustments you may need
• when you may need the work related adjustments, that is, in the job interview, initial work period and/or once in the job.

3. Develop a Plan:

Plan what you want to say:
You need to be prepared about what you want to say to an employer if you require work related adjustments, so develop a plan.

It is helpful to an employer if you can provide:

• a clear statement about your disability
• why you have chosen to disclose your disability
• how your disability may impact on your ability to do the job
• information about work related adjustments and supports you may need
• an outline of how the work related adjustments would assist you to demonstrate your skills in the job interview and/or in the job
• alternative work related options to demonstrate flexibility and ability to negotiate
• examples of how work related adjustments have benefited you in previous positions of employment, education environment and/or other experiences.

It is not essential to disclose in-depth medical or personal information about your disability. However it is important to present information in a clear and concise way and make sure that the information is relevant to the job.

Investigate who to negotiate work related adjustments with
It is important to identify the right person in the business or organisation regarding negotiating and implementing work related adjustments. The most appropriate person may be the convener of a job interview panel member of the interview panel, an employer, supervisor or the human resources department. Some organisations may have support services such as equal employment opportunity units, equity/social justice units or employee support staff that can provide advice, support and assistance in identifying and implementing work related adjustments.

External supports such as union organisations, disability specific programs, employees with a disability and/or friends may assist you to identify the best person to talk with about work related adjustments. Work colleagues may also assist with this.

Plan when you are going to say it
When to negotiate work related adjustments is dependent on when you need to have work related adjustments implemented:

	Work related adjustments When to Negotiate For a job interview AFTER a job interview has been organised and before attending the interview.   When you are offered a job AFTER you accept the job offer   When you have been employed Before you start the job or as soon as you start. If you require the adjustments immediately then it is your responsibility to give the employer time to provide or implement them   In the job When you are ready to. If you require the adjustments immediately then it is your responsibility to give the employer time to implement them   If your job is in jeopardy You may need to inform your employer about your disability and your need to have work related adjustments when explaining poor work performance. This can occur in disciplinary meetings or performance appraisals with an employer. Issues should only be discussed with the person who has outlined your poor performance such as an employer. It is always preferable to negotiate work related adjustments to prevent such issues arising. It is the responsibility of an employer to implement negotiated changes as part of a plan to improve your work performance.

Once you have completed Step 3, you will have developed a clear and concise plan about:

• what information you will present to an employer
• who you will negotiate work related adjustments with
• when you will negotiate work related adjustments

4. Record the Plan

Once you and your employer have agreed on what work related adjustments will be implemented, it is advisable to keep a record of this plan, even if it is as simple as sending an email to say

	"Thanks for the meeting the other day and for agreeing to make the following changes to my workplace: (insert details). Thanks for your assistance with this matter."

5. Difficulties in Negotiating Workplace Adjustments

If you have asked for work related adjustments to be made to meet your disability needs and these have been refused and no reasonable alternative is proposed, then you have a number of options:

1. Ask the relevant person to reconsider and remind them of their responsibilities under disability legislation
2. Find out what complaints processes exist in the organisation as there is usually an appropriate person located in areas such as the Human Resource Department or equity related departments such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Department, Equity and Diversity Centre etc.
3. Make a complaint about discrimination to either the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board or the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission .

This step by step guide is here to assist you. However it is up to you to do your homework and plan how you will negotiate work related adjustments with an employer. If you are informed about how to negotiate then you are in a better position to inform your employer as more often than not they will be guided by your actions. Good luck with developing your negotiation skills!

Further Reading

Job Access website: How to Negotiate a Flexible Work Environment