|
Business and Human Rights: a resource website |
Discrimination against people with disabilities, including in the workplace
See also sections of this website entitled:
Beijing Declaration on the Rights of People with Disabilities in the New Century (adopted 12 Mar. 2000 at the World NGO Summit on Disability, Beijing)
Declaration on the Rights of Disabled Persons (United Nations, 1975)
Selected International Standards and Norms relating to Persons with Disabilities (United Nations)
The Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (United Nations, 1993)
United Nations & ILO websites:
Disability and Work (International Labour Organization)
The UN and Persons with Disabilities (United Nations)
Other websites:
Disability: Novo Nordisk equal opportunities toolbox in Novo Nordisk equal opportunities toolbox (Novo Nordisk)
Disability Rights (Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission)
Disabled Peoples' International (DPI)
"Discrimination", in Global Business Responsibility Resource Center (Business for Social Responsibility) Note: click "Human Rights" in column on left side of the website page which appears, then click "Discrimination".
DuPont Cyrel Partners with Handicapped Workshops - The DuPont iTechnologies site in Parlin, New Jersey, recently launched a product recovery program that provides local jobs for disabled individuals and also helps the environment. (World Business Council for Sustainable Development)
Equality: Disability Issues [UK] (TUC)
Facts About the Americans with Disabilities Act [ADA] (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)
Federal Laws Prohibiting Job Discrimination: Questions And Answers - Federal Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Laws [USA] (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)
Inclusion International {···english} {···español} {···français} {···deutsch}
Information for Employers (Australian Human Rights & Equal Opportunities Commission)
Labor Law - Labor Law is a unique Internet database of detailed labor law reports and supply chain compliance resources [a paid service for subscribers] (Business for Social Responsibility)
World Blind Union {···english} {···español} {···français}
2003:
ILO launches first global report on discrimination at work - Says workplace discrimination remains a persistent global problem, with new, more subtle forms emerging (International Labour Organization, 12 May 2003)
New fact sheets outline protections against discrimination by multinational employers - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) tomorrow will post two new fact sheets - "Employee Rights when Working for Multinational Employers" and "The Equal Employment Opportunity Responsibilities of Multinational Employers" - on the agency's web site. (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 24 Apr. 2003)
Ford and Fannie Mae Top List of 50 Best Companies for Diversity [USA] -...The ranking took into consideration many different aspects of diversity, including race, gender, sexual orientation, and disability, among others...The top ten companies on the list included Ford, Fannie Mae, American Express, Verizon, IBM, SAFECO, Deloitte & Touche, Eastman Kodak, Bank of America, Xerox (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 24 Apr. 2003)
Trial Begins in Bias Suit by Deaf U.P.S. Workers [USA] - Lawyers for 900 deaf workers at United Parcel Service argued today as a trial in their discrimination lawsuit opened that the company had excluded them from numerous job categories and generally limited them to bottom-rung positions. (Steven Greenhouse, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2003)
Law change could help get one million disabled people into work [UK] - The TUC is today (Wednesday) asking trade union members to sign a petition calling for the government to introduce a new law to provide equal rights for disabled people and correct the weaknesses of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. (Trades Union Congress, 2 Apr. 2003)
Friendly's settles claim of discrimination [USA] - A charge four mentally retarded people were refused service at a Friendly's restaurant has led the chain to establish a new anti-discrimination policy and give the Wrentham Developmental Center money for recreational trips. (Laura Crimaldi, MetroWest Daily News, 22 Mar. 2003)
Silver Bay man wins age discrimination lawsuit [USA] - The court rules the employer [Anderson Fuel and Lubricants Inc.] was wrong to demote the man after his heart surgery. - A Silver Bay man was awarded a $157,000 judgment after a court determined that a Superior company was guilty of age discrimination and reckless indifference to the Minnesota Human Rights Act in firing him. (Mark Stodghill, Duluth News Tribune, 18 Mar. 2003)
Ex-firefighter sues DynCorp over dismissal [USA] - Skaggs' lawsuit alleges the company violated Americans with Disability Act and Age Discrimination Employment Act when it fired Skaggs, who is in his early 50s. (Jay F. Marks, Enid News & Eagle, 14 Mar. 2003)
Use kid gloves in handling claims of discrimination or harassment [USA] - There are simple ways employers can more effectively cooperate with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission while creating a better environment for the resolution of employment issues. These guidelines will minimize both the risk of claims and potential liability should a claim be asserted. (Stephen W. Schueler, Winstead Sechrest & Minick PC, in Houston Business Journal, 14 Mar. 2003)
Internationally-recognised core labour standards in Canada - Canada has ratified only five of the eight core labour standards...Canada has ratified both the ILO’s core conventions on discrimination. While the law is generally in compliance with those conventions, in practice women continue to receive much lower remuneration than men. Disabled people and aboriginal peoples are greatly under-represented in the work force. (International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, 11 Mar. 2003)
Employers 'wide open' to discrimination claims [UK] - UK employers are leaving themselves wide open to discrimination claims according to the Work Foundation. The survey of business recruitment practices found that firms were failing to monitor racial and sexual diversity amongst jobseekers...It is illegal for employers to discriminate against applicants on the basis of sex, disability or race. It will soon become illegal to discriminate on grounds of age, sexual orientation and religion. (BBC News, 10 Mar. 2003)
EEOC [U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] sues McDonald's restaurant for disability bias against employee with facial disfigurement -...The suit says that McDonald's discriminated against Samantha Robichaud when it denied her the opportunity for promotion to a management position and constructively discharged her due to a cosmetic disfigurement known as Sturge Weber Syndrome. (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 7 Mar. 2003)
Waste management company to pay nearly $200,000 for disability discrimination - Qualified Employee with Crohn's Disease Fired Unlawfully, EEOC Suit Says - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced a $194,000 settlement of an employment discrimination lawsuit filed under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) on behalf of a qualified former employee with Crohn's disease who was terminated by Browning-Ferris, Inc., a waste management company. (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 5 Mar. 2003)
Deaf Job Applicant to Receive $75,000 for Disability Bias in EEOC [U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] Settlement with Holiday Inn-Northglenn - Company to Also Conduct Comprehensive Training as Part of Consent Decree (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 18 Feb. 2003)
Target Corp. to pay $95,000, implement training for failure to accommodate disabled worker [USA] (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 15 Jan. 2003)
2002:
Donnelley to pay $150,000 to paraplegic graphics technician for job bias [USA] - EEOC Consent Decree with Printing Giant Requires Anti-Discrimination Policy for Temporary Employees and Training (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 16 Dec. 2002)
EEOC [U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] settles disability discrimination suit against aerospace giant Honeywell for $100,000 (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 22 Nov. 2002)
Protests target retail chains [USA] - The National Organization for Women is calling for a day of protest against Wal-Mart on Saturday, charging the retail chain with such offenses as failing to promote women to managerial and supervisory jobs, failing to pay women wages equal to their male counterparts, violating child labor laws and the Americans with Disabilities Act, and trying to force out pro-union workers. (Christine Gillette, Portsmouth Herald [USA], 25 Sep. 2002)
Minister launches code of practice on employment of people with disabilities [South Africa] (Mokgadi Pela, Business Report, 20 Aug. 2002)
EEOC [U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] issues handbook to help small businesses comply with disabilities act (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 15 Aug. 2002)
Workplace-bias curbs extended [Massachusetts, USA] - Law extends time to file complaints - A bill to extend the deadline for filing workplace bias and sexual harassment charges against employers has been signed into law, increasing the statute of limitations for such claims in Massachusetts from six months to 300 days. (Diane E. Lewis, Boston Globe, 9 Aug. 2002)
US judge directs United Airlines to hire, reimburse deaf mechanic - Five years of anger and frustration ended yesterday for a deaf airline mechanic when a federal judge ruled that United Airlines had papered over its discrimination with a flurry of sham reasons not to hire him. (Thanassis Cambanis, Boston Globe, 8 Aug. 2002)
Discrimination suits take big risks for big rewards [USA] - Bondurant, Mixson & Elmore is among a dozen or so law firms nationwide that have become part of a cottage industry in class-action lawsuits against large employers, alleging racial bias in their hiring, promotion and pay practices. The law firms...also sue on behalf of workers who believe they are being denied equal opportunity because of gender, age, disability and other factors. (Robert Luke, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 5 Aug. 2002)
Labor Dept. [USA] Announces $6 Million Available for Grants to Integrate People with Disabilities into the Workforce (U.S. Department of Labor, 24 July 2002)
TCS to teach computer skills to ‘special children’ [India] -...Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has set up a fully-equipped computer training laboratory for children from the Society for the Welfare of the Physically Handicapped and Research Centre, in Pune. (InfoChange [India]), sourced from Indian Express, 19 July 2002, and Times News Network [India], 20 July 2002)
The Employers' Forum on Disability Global Inclusion Benchmark (AccountAbility, 10 July 2002)
Disability no bar in Chennai software firm [India]: Two-thirds of the employees of Lasersoft Infosys are challenged - In a country which mostly ignores its about 70 million-strong disabled population, Chennai's Lasersoft Infosys Ltd is setting standards for the professional excellence the physically challenged can attain. (InfoChange [India]), sourced from IANS, 24 June 2002)
The concept and practice of affirmative action - Final report submitted by Mr. Marc Bossuyt, Special Rapporteur (document for U.N. Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, 17 June 2002)
High court ruling called setback for disabled, ill [USA] - In another setback for disabled-rights claims in the workplace, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously Monday that employers can reject applicants for jobs that would endanger their health. The ruling, in the case of a Southern California refinery worker with a liver disease, alarmed advocates for HIV-positive people and the mentally ill, who said cost-conscious employers could exaggerate or invent health concerns to turn applicants away. (Bob Egelko, San Francisco Chronicle, 11 June 2002)
Cyber café for the blind in Mumbai [India] -...The National Association of the Blind (NAB) has opened a cyber cafe for the visually impaired in its office at Worli, Mumbai. Set up with help from Microsoft, the cyber cafe, which is a month old, has five computers, all provided with screen reading software and headphones. (InfoChange [India]), sourced from Times of India, 10 June 2002)
Court Rules on Disabled Workers [USA] - In a setback for disabled workers, the Supreme Court ruled Monday those employees are not always entitled to premium assignments intended for more senior workers. (Gina Holland, Associated Press, 29 Apr. 2002)
Chicagoans to Charge Discrimination Against MCI, WorldCom [USA]: Past and present employees of MCI and WorldCom in Chicago have banded together with some 150 others across the nation to levy a class action lawsuit for having allegedly faced sex, race, disability, age and religious discrimination on a daily basis. (Adam Fendelman, ePrairie.com, 2 Apr. 2002)
EEOC [U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] initiates talks with small businesses on employment of individuals with disabilities (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 1 Apr. 2002)
Help firms to employ disabled, Brown told [UK]: At a meeting with the chancellor, the British Chambers of Commerce will call for the government to extend its Access to Work Scheme, which helps firms with the costs of hiring employees with disabilities...From 2004, the Disability Discrimination Act will mean that companies have to provide equal employment opportunities to disabled workers. (Heather Stewart, Guardian [UK], 26 Mar. 2002)
{···français} Le droit des sociétés de plus en plus politique [France]: Avec la loi sur les nouvelles régulations économiques, il est aussi un outil de protection des salariés -...La liste vise l'effectif et les embauches, mais aussi les licenciements et leurs motifs, les heures supplémentaires, la main-d'œuvre extérieure, l'organisation du temps de travail, l'état de l'égalité professionnelle entre femmes et hommes, l'insertion des travailleurs handicapés, l'importance de la sous-traitance ou la manière dont la société prend en compte l'impact territorial de ses activités. (Marie-Anne Frison-Roche, professeur de droit à l'Institut d'études politiques de Paris, Le Monde, 25 mars 2002)
High court ruling nicks the protective coating of arbitration policies [USA]:...Arbitration clauses have become common in most business agreements, including employment contracts...In a recent case, EEOC v. Waffle House Inc., the US Supreme Court has declared that the EEOC [U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] may go to court to seek all available remedies for alleged job discrimination regardless of the employer-employee agreement to resolve their disputes through binding arbitration. (Andrew Grainger & Thomas Royall Smith, Boston Globe, 24 Mar. 2002)
Disability As The Cinderella Of CSR? As a CSR advocate and a disability rights campaigner, I am increasingly frustrated that the organisations promoting CSR appear to treat disability as a Cinderella issue. Groups which rightly regard discrimination on grounds of sex, race (and increasingly also) sexual orientation as a human rights question, all too often don’t seem to see discrimination on grounds of disability in the same way! (David Grayson, a director of Business in the Community, in SustainAbility Radar, Mar. 2002)
EEOC issues fiscal 2001 enforcement data [USA] - Statistics Show Age Bias and Disability Discrimination Charges on the Rise (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 22 Feb. 2002)
High Court Limits Who Is Disabled Ruling [USA]: Justices put federal anti-bias law further out of reach for injured workers - The Supreme Court made it harder Tuesday for millions of workers with painful wrist injuries, bad backs or similar impairments to qualify for protection as disabled people under the federal anti-discrimination law. (David G. Savage, Los Angeles Times, 9 Jan. 2002)
2001:
Comprehensive EEOC, Wal-Mart Settlement Resolves Disability Lawsuit: The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that a $6.8 million consent decree with retail giant Wal-Mart Stores was signed today [resolves EEOC's lawsuit alleging Wal-Mart violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 17 Dec. 2001)
Worldwide Jobs Drive for Disabled People Launched:...The International Labour Organization (ILO) is calling on employers to follow a code of practice unveiled today which would help improve job prospects among the 610 million disabled people worldwide. (Daniel Nelson, OneWorld UK, 3 Dec. 2001)
Disabilities: Unions will do more [Canada] -...Unions are being asked to find ways to mobilize, organize, represent, and educate working people with disabilities about their rights in the workplace. (Canadian Labour Congress, Canada NewsWire, 3 Dec. 2001)
99% of disabled unemployed [South Africa]: Ninety-nine percent of the 4.8 million disabled people in South Africa are unemployed, Disability Resource Solutions said on Sunday. (News24.com [South Africa], 2 Dec. 2001)
ILO Code [Code of Practice on Managing Disability in the Workplace] seeks to improve job prospects for the disabled (International Labour Organization, 30 Nov. 2001)
Internationally-Recognised Core Labour Standards In The Slovak Republic: Report for the WTO General Council Review of the trade policies of the Slovak Republic...Women, the disabled, and Roma face discrimination in employment. (International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, 20 Nov. 2001)
2000:
"Five Years After Copenhagen" - Roundtable on Disability and Social Development - Geneva 2000 NGO Forum - Message by Mr. Juan Somavia, Director-General, ILO (Juan Somavia, Director-General, International Labour Organization, 28 June 2000)