#STUC22 Quotas for the employment of disabled people should be reinstated in law, Congress agreed. A motion from Aberdeen Trades Union Council said that employers must be made accountable and legally responsible for employing disabled people. Congress committed to lobby the Scottish government to reinstate and update the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act in Scotland.
Tony Slaven, moving a UNISON amendment, said we need action on many fronts. “‘Building Back Better’, ‘A People’s Recovery’ and ‘A Just Transition’ must mean something for disabled people.”
“UNISON believes direct public delivery of services and conditionality in public procurement are critical for delivering quality employment for disabled people. “
“Over £5 billion of public money is being spent on the six City Region Deals and six Regional Growth Deals. They aim to deliver ‘Inclusive’ economic growth, but how ‘inclusive’ is this of disabled people?” asked Tony. “Audit Scotland found the government had no way of assessing this.”
“Delivering training, apprenticeships and quality jobs for disabled people could and should be woven right through these large scale publicly funded programmes. It should also be part of the economic planning, we need, sector by sector, to achieve net zero and a just transition.”