DR UK and SPP Call on Pensions Industry to Lead on Disability Inclusion
Kamran Mallick, Disability Rights UK's CEO, speaks about the challenges Disabled people face in UK workplaces. We are "twice as likely to be unemployed as non-disabled people. Even when in work, they are paid on average 13.8% less per hour, and many are clustered in lower-paid, less secure roles with fewer progression opportunities. These inequalities result not from individual capability, but structural and attitudinal barriers within our labour market."
In his practical solutions for inclusion and equity, Mallick said: "Recruitment must be reimagined and monitored. Inclusive job descriptions that allow flexibility and remote working options, accessible platforms, alternative ways of assessing suitability, and ensuring flexibility at interviews all help level the playing field."
Why this matters for the pensions industry? "The pensions industry must lead by example, actively supporting systemic changes to improve employment outcomes for Disabled people. A concrete way to do this is to endorse and join the Disability Employment Charter’s recommendations. We can all be part of a national movement committed to closing the disability employment and pension gaps, making a meaningful step towards a more inclusive and equitable future."
Feld, an SPP member, shares her own experience of living with multiple health conditions, undergoing major surgery and negotiating flexible working arrangements to stay in a career she loves.
She says: “Chronic illness combined with caring responsibilities can make somebody a determined, efficient, innovative problem-solver. Employers, take note. We may be so reliable and capable you don’t realise we’re struggling.”
She praises employers who provide adjustments, such as home working, reduced hours and active disability and menopause networks but warns that many Disabled employees are not as fortunate.
She says: “Many UK Disabled employees don’t get adjustments, forcing them out of hard-earned careers and often into poverty.”
Feld also points to the link between disability and pension poverty, noting that 45 per cent of people over state pension age have disabilities.
She adds: “I hope policymakers and industry gain more understanding of the barriers Disabled people (and carers) face and more fully include Disabled people – whether as your colleagues or as pension scheme members.”