Information about Work
for People with Spinal Cord Injuries
Looking for work? Here are some things to think about.
This information package gives you information on the following areas:
- Vocational Counselling - Getting into work: Stay with your previous employer or retrain?
- Employers – What you can expect from an existing or potential employer
- Disclosure – Discussing your Disability
- The Law – Know your rights
- Discrimination – What to do if it happens to you
- Transport – Getting to work and home
Vocational Counselling
You can contact a private rehabilitation service for work rehabilitation or career counseling. Refer to the white or yellow pages of the telephone directory under “work”, “vocation” or “career”
COMMONWEALTH REHABILITATION SERVICE (CRS).
The CRS delivers vocational rehabilitation services to Australian citizens or residents who have an injury, disability or health condition. They assist people who have a disability or injury to get a job or return to their job. This service is free to Australian citizens aged between 14 to 65 who have a disability and receiving income support payments from Centrelink. If you are receiving Workers Compensation, they normally obtain the costs directly from your insurer.
Contact:
Local office phone 1800 624 824
National Office: phone 02 6211 6900.
(free call within Australia, calls from mobile phones will be charged at the
applicable mobile rate)
International telephone: +61 2 6211 6900
If hearing impaired contact TTY: 02 9242 487
Online: http://www.crsaustralia.gov.au/
Centrelink
If you need to contact CentreLink you should make sure that you contact the Disability Support Officer (DSO). Doing this will save you time and confusion.
To contact a Disability Support Officer, call the appropriate number from the list below and get the operator to make arrangements for an interview with a Disability Support Officer.
The Disability Support Officer (DSO) will make an assessment of your needs (they will do this using information provided by you and a health professional e.g. a doctor, an occupational therapist or a social worker). The DSO will then make a decision regarding which vocational rehabilitation provider or which disabilities employment assistance provider CentreLink will refer you to.
For enquiries about:
Disability Support Pension contact: 132 717
Newstart contact: 132 850
Youth Allowance/Youth Study contact: 132490
General Appointments contact: 131 021
Online: www.centrelink.gov.au
TAFE and OTEN counselling services
You don’t need to be an enrolled TAFE student to use this service. Remember that these counsellors focus mostly on options involving TAFE courses but they will also give you advice on other areas as well. You can make an appointment for a face-to-face or telephone interview.
Online: You can get in touch with a counsellor from your nearest campus by doing the following:
Go to the TAFE website http://www.tafensw.edu.au/
Select WHERE IS THE BEST LOCATION FOR YOU?
Select the appropriate institute for you
Select the appropriate college for you
Select CLICK HERE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Find the number for the Counselling and Career Services
Telephone: For general information contact the state office of TAFE NSW Counselling and Career Services (02) 9244 5103
About Employers
It is illegal for employers to discriminate against employees or potential employees on the grounds of disability (NSW Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 Part 4A).
The Federal Disability Discrimination Act (1992) requires employers to make
"reasonable adjustments" to ensure that people with a disability
have equal opportunity. If a potential employee can safely meet the essential
requirements of a job (i.e. achieve the required results irrespective of the
means), they must be given the same opportunities as other candidates. The
law states that, whenever it is, NECESSARY, POSSIBLE, and, REASONABLE, employers
should take into account a person's disability and make appropriate adjustment
to the work environment to accommodate that person. An employer or any other
service provider that is aware of an individual's disability has a legal obligation
to provide what is deemed 'reasonable adjustment' to accommodate the needs
of a person with a disability.
Reasonable adjustments are a form of equal opportunity and may include:
- job redesign
- changing the workplace or work area
- purchasing or modifying equipment
- offering flexible working arrangements.
Failure to provide an adjustment to a job applicant or an employee may therefore
constitute unlawful discrimination.
Adjustments (often called reasonable adjustments) are a form of equal opportunity.
Adjustments may include:
- job redesign
- changing the workplace or work area
- purchasing or modifying equipment
- offering flexible working arrangements.
Useful links about reasonable adjustments you can make
Jobable.gov
http://www.jobable.gov.au/handy_tips/general_reasonable_adjustment.asp
NSW Public Sector
http://www.eeo.nsw.gov.au/people_with_a_disability/workplace_adjustments
Issues for employees with a disability
Employees with a disability who believe that they are being discriminated against because of their disability can:
- ask their manager and/or the agency’s EEO Co-ordinator for advice and assistance
- use their agency’s grievance procedures to attempt to resolve the matter
- complain to the Anti-Discrimination Board if they consider their concerns have not been listened to or dealt with.
Disclosure
Talking about your disability in the workplace -
What to say - When to say it - Whom to say it to
Disclosing your disability can be a big decision. Remember it is your choice and it can be an important one. When thinking about employment or study, the document Disclosure: It’s a Personal Decision helps you understand the potential benefits and disadvantages of disclosing your disability.
You can access the general disability policy documents at
http://www.uws.edu.au/currentstudents/current_students/getting_help/disability_services
http://www.adcet.edu.au/Student_Resources/Disclosure_of_Disability.chpx
The Law – Know your rights
Disability Discrimination Act 1992
The Disability Discrimination Act makes it unlawful to discriminate against
people with disabilities in employment, including recruitment, terms and conditions
of employment, and dismissal or termination.
Types of discrimination
- Direct Discrimination - when someone receives less favourable treatment than a person without a disability in the same circumstances
- Indirect Discrimination - when a policy, practice or requirement is applied equally but has a discriminatory effect on people with a disability
For a brief guide to the Disability Discrimination Act and links
Human
Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
Australian
Government Information Site: Jobable
The Federal Privacy Act 1988
The Privacy Act 1988 protects your personal information. You have the right
to know how your personal information is collected, what it is to be used
for, who is collecting the information and to correct any wrong information.
Read the
Act
Australian Government
– Office of the Privacy Commissioner
Online: http://www.privacy.gov.au
Telephone: 1300 363 992
Australian Government Information
Site: Jobable
Discrimination - What to do if it happens to you
Under the Disability Discrimination Act of 1992, you have the right to complain to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) if you think you have been discriminated due to your disability.
Your complaint should be in writing. If you cannot write, send it by email.
You
can get someone else to write down your complaint or you can ask the HREOC
to
help you write it down. You can also lodge a complaint electronically through
them (HREOC) website.
The complaint should say what happened, when, where, who was involved, and give the names of anyone else who can say what happened.
Online Information
Information
about the complaints process
Complaints
under the Disability Discrimination Act
Contacts
Disability Abuse and Neglect Hotline – This referral and advocacy service
is an Australia-wide telephone hotline for reporting abuse and neglect of
people with disabilities using government-funded services.
Telephone: 1800 880 052
Online: http://www.disabilityhotline.org/
Australia Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission complaints infoline
Telephone: 1300 656 419
Transport Getting there and back
Mobility Allowance
Financial assistance for people with disabilities who are employed or are
in training or jobseeking and are unable to use public transport without substantial
assistance.
Transport concessions are available - check with your local state transport
authority for details
Mobility Allowance is for people with disabilities, illnesses or injuries who need to travel between their place of work/study and home. It is for people 16 and over and who can’t use public transport due to their disability for 12 months or longer and who are:
- doing at least 32 hours work or training over a 4 week period
- receive a Newstart/Youth Allowance or Austudy
- have an agreement with a Job Network or disability employment service to look for work.
CentreLink information about the Mobility Allowance
Telephone: CentreLink 13 2717
The Mobility Parking Scheme
The Mobility Parking Scheme (MPS) provides parking concessions to people with disabilities. MPS card holders can:
- Park in disabled car spaces
- Park for no charge in areas metered parking
- Park longer in parking spots which have time limits. (See table below)
| If the sign says | MPS cardholders can: |
|---|---|
| Parking for more than 30 minutes | Park for an unlimited time |
| Park to 30 minutes | Park for 2 hours |
| Park for less than 30 minutes | Park for 30 minutes (maximum) |
More information about the Mobility Parking Scheme
Mobility Stickers
To apply for the Mobility Parking Scheme: You need to fill out a Road Transport Authority Application. Part of this application requires your doctor to complete a Medical Certificate. Applications must be made in person (unless under 16 or the RTA has provided a photo exemption). You will need to have a photo taken, provide proof of identity and pay $30 (pension holders are exempt)
Application Forms for the Mobility Parking Scheme
List of Accessible RTA offices
Telephone: RTA 13 22 13
Public Transport
CityRail
Station
information for people with disabilities travelling on CityRail
131500
Transport Covers all modes of transport (Bus, Train and Ferry). "Plan a Trip" then enter details. If you scroll down you will see "Mobility Requirements".
Be prepared
If you are going to travel a lot, have a weekly ticket or 10-trip
ticket can make getting on the bus smoother. If not, having the correct
change ready will also make your trip less stressful.
Accessible Taxis
Waiting time can vary from 5 minutes to 2 hours so it’s important to get
a regular booking if you want to use taxis to get to work.
It is a good idea to contact the taxi company in your local area and get the
mobile telephone number of a number of accessible taxicabs. You can then pre
plan your trip and develop a personal relationship with reliable companies
and drivers.
| Taxi Company | Phone / Website | Number and Type of Accessible Taxis |
| ABC Cabs | 13 25 22 | 2 flash, 1 high |
Legion Cabs |
13 14 51 |
3 bus, 1 metro, 21 flash |
| Manly Cabs | 131 668 | 3 bus, 3 flash, 1 high |
Premier Cabs |
132 116 | 12 high, 12 bus, 9 flash |
| RSL Cabs | 13 22 11 | 4 high, 1 bus |
| TCS Cabs | 8332 8888 |
9 high, 14 metro, 4 bus, 2 maxi, 8 flash |
| St George Cabs | 13 21 16 | 5 high, 5 flash |
Taxi Transport Subsidy Scheme
Under the Taxi Transport Subsidy Scheme people with a disability can get a
subsidy equal to half the metered taxi fare, to a maximum of $30.
Under this scheme, bookings for conventional cars are called 'M40' bookings
and bookings for larger multipurpose taxis are known as M50' bookings. Your
eligibility will depend on the nature of your disability, and whether it is
permanent or long term, and your difficulty in using other forms of public
transport. Contact the Department of Transport on 1800 623 724 for more information.