Strengthening Workplace Protections and Reasonable Adjustments for Disabled and Neurodivergent Workers and Workers with Mental Health Conditions in Northern Ireland

Conference Notes:

1. Disabled workers in Northern Ireland continue to face serious barriers to getting, keeping, and progressing in work.
2. Mental ill health among workers in Northern Ireland is increasing. Stress, anxiety, depression, and burnout are now some of the main causes of workplace absence. Long waits for mental health services and uneven access to Occupational Health support mean that many workers do not receive help quickly enough. This increases the risk of crisis and people leaving the workforce early.
3. The main law protecting disabled workers in Northern Ireland is still the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. As a result, workers in Northern Ireland have weaker and less consistent protection against discrimination, harassment, and victimization than workers in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland.
4. The NIC-ICTU Disabled Workers Equality Committee does valuable work. The Disability Champions training programme has also improved knowledge and support across trade unions.

Conference Believes:

1. Everyone has the right to receive timely and effective reasonable adjustments. Access to these adjustments should not depend on an employer’s goodwill.
2. Disabled and neurodivergent workers are more likely to face capability procedures, disciplinary action, and unfair dismissal. These outcomes are often caused by delays in providing reasonable adjustments or by refusing to provide them.
3. Mental health must be treated as seriously as physical health. Workers experiencing mental ill health are often penalised through absence triggers, performance management, or capability procedures. In many cases, early support and appropriate adjustments could prevent these problems.
4. Trade unions must lead the campaign for equal legal protection and workplace systems that provide adjustments as a normal part of working life. Workers should not have to repeatedly explain or prove their health conditions or support needs.

Conference Calls Upon the Northern Ireland Committee (NIC) to:

1. Work with the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI) to campaign for urgent and wide-ranging reform of disability equality law. This should include one equality law that provides stronger protection and closes current gaps.
2. Lobby the Northern Ireland Executive and Assembly to oppose cuts, freezes, or changes led by Westminster that reduce disability and welfare benefits. Such changes can penalise vulnerable workers and push households into poverty.
3. Coordinate a united strategy among all affiliated unions in Northern Ireland to secure the mandatory use of the Workplace Reasonable Adjustment Disability Passport in both the public and private sectors. Agreed adjustments should remain in place when management changes.
4. Promote the widespread use of the ICTU Neurodiversity Guide in workplace bargaining. This should support clear policies on neuroinclusive recruitment, sensory adjustments, and flexible working.
5. Press the Northern Ireland Executive, the Public Health Agency, and employers to provide timely access to mental health support. This should include counselling, trauma-informed Occupational Health assessments, and workplace adjustments that reduce stress and prevent burnout. Workers experiencing mental ill health must also be protected from unfair treatment in the application absence management or capability procedures.