Moneo writes: A blind spot for the sector

At the start of this year, I was reading an article in the business section of one of the leading newspapers. It was about an inspiring man called Steve Ingham who is CEO of a leading company, PageGroup. Ingham is a 6ft 4in former rugby player who was fit and active until a skiing accident in March 2019 left him without the use of his legs due to a spinal cord injury. He is now an ardent campaigner in the field of disability and workers’ rights.

Many of us will be only too aware of the impact of the Disability Discrimination Act when it first came into being in 1995 and subsequently the Equality Act of 2010. These Acts were meant to recognise the particular constraints experienced by and acting upon disabled people. Much has been made in recent years of the need to recognise gender and ethnic diversity in the workplace and this is a major area of concern for many company boards and employers in general. However, the sad fact is that while these areas have received a high level of attention the situation faced by disabled people in the workplace is far behind where it should be. Businesses often focus their attention on boosting the needs of other groups but there should also be space to equally represent disabilities.