Frequently Asked Questions

Disabled people: General questions

1. What is the definition of disability?

   Disability covers both physical and mental impairments and covers all employees who might be hampered in work performance. This includes people with long term or progressive conditions as well as people with more stable disorders. At national level, policies relating to people with disabilities reflect the diversity of cultures and legislative frameworks in the EU Member States: the definitions and the criteria for determining disability are currently laid down in national legislation and administrative practices and differ across the current Member States according to their perceptions of, and approaches to, disability. Each Member State has adopted a range of measures to promote the integration and employment of people with disabilities.

2. What employment legislation applies to workers with disabilities?

   Employees are covered by anti-discrimination and safety and health legislation. The two areas of legislation take similar approaches. Genuine conflicts, where complying with one makes it impossible to comply with the other, are rare.

   
   Safety and health legislation

   People with disabilities should receive equal treatment at work and this includes equality regarding health and safety at work. People with disabilities are therefore covered by all European occupational health and safety legislation. The legislation should be applied to facilitate the employment of people with disabilities.

   At EU level, directive 89/654/EEC covers minimum safety and health
   requirements for the workplace, and provides, at points 20 and 15 of annexes I and II respectively, that ‘workplaces must be accommodated to take account, where required, of the needs of disabled workers. This provision applies in particular to the doors, passageways, staircases, showers, washbasins, lavatories and workstations used or occupied directly by disabled workers’. In addition in respect of ‘workplaces which have been subject, after 31 December 1992, to modifications, extensions and/or renovations, the employer must take the measures necessary to ensure that such modifications, extensions or renovations conform to the minimum levels corresponding to those described in the Annex I’ (Article 5 of Directive 89/654/CEE).

   Directive 89/391/EEC covers a ‘framework’ of measures to improve safety and health at work. In Article 8 it provides for an obligation on employers to take appropriate measures for first aid, fire prevention and evacuation of workers, while carrying out their assessment of the risks. In addition, Annexes I and II of Directive 89/654/EEC contain minimum provisions with regard to corridors and emergency exits as well as measures for the detection and prevention of fire.

   The ‘framework’ directive also provides, at Article 15, that ‘particularly sensitive risk groups must be protected against the dangers which specifically affect them’. This could mean taking extra measures to prevent exposure of asthma suffers to sensitising agents

   The general principle of all EU occupational safety and health directives is that risks should be prevented at source and that work organization, tasks, equipment and tools should be adapted to workers in order to eliminate and reduce risks. Employers’ obligations to carry out risk assessments and bring in appropriate protective measures cover both physical risks and psychosocial risks such as stress.

   The provisions of these directives are enacted through national law in each Member State.

   
   Anti-discrimination legislation

   Directive 2000/78/EC establishes a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation.

   The Directive prohibits any discrimination, be it direct or indirect, on the grounds of religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation. With regard to disability, this Directive recognises that the failure to provide reasonable accommodation in the
   workplace can constitute discrimination. In practical terms 'reasonable accommodation' includes measures to adapt the workplace to individual workers with a disability, for example by adapting premises and equipment, as well as patterns of working time etc., in order to facilitate their access to employment. Member States have had until December 2003 to transpose the provisions of the Directive into national law. They also have the possibility of extending for a further three years the transposition of the Directive as regards its provisions on disability and age.

   Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation. OJ L 303 of 2 December 2000.

   Many changes to improve health and safety and work accessibility for disabled workers will improve health and safety for all workers, and also make services more accessible to disabled clients and customers.

3. Do any European standards exist for designers or ergonomists about addressing the needs of disabled persons in the workplace?

   European Standards are developed through The European Committee for Standardization (CEN).

   For example, the Committee has developed the CEN/CENELEC Guide 6 in which specific guidance is provided to writers of relevant standards relating to collective transport systems on how to take account of the needs of potential passengers with functional limitations, especially older persons and persons with disabilities.

   The EU Action Plan on Disability includes the principle of Design For All. In particular, the European Commission intends to promote the elaboration of European technical standards, standardisation documents and other more general guidelines giving technical expression to the concept of "Accessibility for all", which is crucial for the further integration of people with disabilities into the economy and society. It will also encourage efforts to raise awareness among standardisation stakeholders on the concept of ‘accessibility for all’ and the corresponding market opportunities.

4. What statistics relate to OSH and disability?

   The main European reference source on statistics related to OSH and disability is provided by Eurostat.

5. Where can employers wanting to integrate disabled workers into the workplace find help?

   Employers wanting to integrate people with disablities into the workplace may find support through:

   • national official programmes for financial incentives
   • national legislation supporting employment
   • programmes organised by intermediary organisations, both governmental and non-governmental

   • Funding possibilities regarding disability on the web page of the European Commission and unit Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, (section “People with disabilities”)

   Under ‘providers’ and ‘topics’ in the links section you will find links to the websites of institutions and organisations in various Member States. These organisations often contain details of the schemes they run and assistance they offer on their website.

6. What EU funding possibilities are there for projects concerning workers with disabilities?

   Many of the EU funding programmes are quite general in their scope, so there could be a possibility of including a project on disabled workers in various programme areas. Information on that can be found on homepage of the European Commission.

   Some public health programmes may cover occupational safety and health. Depending on the precise nature of a project, there maybe other programme categories that it could fall under other than health.

   The Sixth Framework Programme and The Seventh Framework Programme are the Union's main instrument for the funding of research in Europe.

   The Agency occasionally runs very specific and limited co-funding programmes, for example, in relation to European Week or Small and Medium Sized Enterprises. They are generally to support projects designed to improve good practice at the workplace level. Details of such programmes are always given on the web site of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.

7. What can help to promote successful reintegration into work following injury or ill health caused by work?

   Return-to-work following work-related injury or ill-health is more to successful where there is:

   • Good contact between the worker and the enterprise
   • An early start to reintegration programme
   • Support services and commitment from the enterprise
   • Rehabilitation orientated to the job
   • Involvement of qualified experts
   • Return-to-work policy integrated into a clear prevention strategy
   • Support from the worker’s family

8. What can help to promote effective assessment of risks to workers with disabilities?

   Tips for successful risk assessment include:

   • keeping in mind the objective of complying with health and safety duties and avoiding discrimination
   • taking account of individual worker differences in general or generic risk assessments
   • coordination between safety personnel and equal opportunities personnel
   • consultation with disabled workers
   • training safety personnel about disability
   • training equal opportunities personnel about health and safety
   • seeking outside help as necessary, for example from safety organisations or disability organisations
   • considering disabled workers as part of risk assessments at the design and planning stage, rather than waiting for a disabled worker to be employed and then having to make changes.

9. What is risk assessment?

   A risk assessment is nothing more than a careful examination of what, in your work, could cause harm to people, so that you can judge whether you have taken enough precautions or should do more to prevent harm.

   Any risk assessment process should:

   • look for the hazards (whether arising from work activities or from other factors, e.g. the layout of the premises)
   • decide who might be harmed and how
   • evaluate the extent of the risks involved
   • decide whether existing precautions are adequate or whether more control measures should be introduced record the findings
   • implementation and operation: involves putting plans into practice. this may mean making changes to the organisation and working procedures, working environment, equipment and products used; training management and staff; and improving communications.
   • involve employees and worker representatives, including consulting them about the risks and prevention measures in the process and providing information on risk assessment results
   • include periodic reviews to check that measures, policies and procedures remain appropriate and are working and revise if necessary

10. What should a risk assessment cover?

    Any risk assessment at the workplace should cover:

    • the task, for example, the design of the job, work activities etc.
    • the individual, for example, any specific needs with respect to disability
    • work equipment, for example, assistive technologies, whether work stations and equipment are adjusted to individual requirements
    • the work environment, for example, the layout of premises, lighting, heating, access, egress
    • work organisation, for example, how work is organised and schedules
    • physical hazards, such as dangerous substances, for example, asthma sufferers may be more sensitive to chemicals used at work
    • psychosocial hazards such as stress or bullying, for example, disability may be used as an excuse for bullying
    • information and training needs, for example, providing safety information and training in different mediums.