Autistic adults bullied and not supported at work, poll shows

Original post from The Independent

‘…………….By Sarah Cassidy

Valerie Carlin, 45, suffers with Asperger syndrome David Sandison

More than a third of adults with autism have been bullied or discriminated against at work, the largest ever survey on the condition has found.

Meanwhile, 43 per cent said they had left or lost a job because of their autism, the poll by the National Autistic Society (NAS) concluded.

The NAS said the findings highlight the lack of support for people with autism in the workplace, and the lack of awareness of the condition among employers and colleagues. The poll, released for the charity’s 50th birthday this week, found just 10 per cent of adults with autism in paid employment receive support from their employers, despite 53 per cent saying they would like it.

The charity called for employers to ensure that support is in place for employees with autism so that they “have the opportunity to make a valuable contribution to society like everyone else”.

David Perkins, manager of Prospects, the NAS’s employment service, said: “It is unacceptable in the current economic climate that some employers are failing to put reasonable support in place to keep adults with autism in work and off benefits. It needs to be nationally understood and accepted that bullying or discrimination of any kind in the workplace is deplorable, and against a colleague because of their disability it is tantamount to anti-disability abuse. We urge employers to make sure their offices have an ‘autism-friendly’ ethos; otherwise we risk failing thousands of willing and able workers.”

Almost one in three respondents (32 per cent) said the support or adjustments made by their employer or manager in relation to their autism was poor. A similar proportion (30 per cent) complained that the support or adjustments had been poor. Almost four in 10 respondents (38 per cent) reported that the suitability of the work environment in relation to their autism was poor. Fewer than one in five (19 per cent) said they had no experience of bullying, unfairness or lack of support at work.

Research has shown that children with autism are three times as likely to be bullied as other youngsters.

Last month a coroner warned that young people with autism could be being failed by health agencies after an autistic boy committed suicide after being bullied at college.

Bradford coroner Paul Marks said the death of Gareth Oates, from Stowmarket, Suffolk, could probably have been averted if it had not been for the failings of a number of mental health, social services and education agencies.

Case study: ‘People tended to exclude me’

Valerie Carlin, 45, from south-west London, has an autistic spectrum disorder and has been out of work for three years since leaving her career in finance because of bullying at work. She said: “Although I was good at the actual job, people tended to exclude me socially, to ignore me and try not to give me any work to do.

“I was diagnosed three years ago with an autistic spectrum disorder which is similar in many ways to Asperger’s. My communication problems meant, over time, I antagonised people and never realised why.”   ………’

Disabled man ‘asked to leave nightclub because he was safety hazard in his wheelchair’

Original post from Disable Go News

‘………………

A disabled man claims he was asked to leave a nightclub because he was a “safety hazard”.

Nate Williams has a form of cerebral palsy which affects his balance and co-ordination, and uses a wheelchair.

He visited Rosies club in Chester with friends last Friday night but he says he was told by doormen the floor he was on would shortly be closing.

When it did close he would be asked to leave because the upstairs floors were not wheelchair-friendly and the building had no lift or ramp, Nate says.

Nate was offered free entry until it was time for the floor to close, at which time he says a doorman asked him to leave – despite his protests he could walk upstairs with a friend’s help.

The 23-year-old from Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, said: “I have been on many nights out across the country and I’ve never been treated with such disrespect.

“I’ve been using a wheelchair since I was 12. I’m very active and compete regularly in athletics but they asked me to leave because I was a ‘safety hazard’ even though I had the full ability to walk upstairs and look after myself.”

He continued: “I have been to Rosies before and getting into the club is not very practical – escorted by a bouncer through a back alley, past rotten smelling bins and through two heavy fire-exit doors – but I didn’t mind as long as I was allowed in with my friends.

“What I didn’t appreciate was the way I was kicked out and not allowed to join my friends upstairs on the top floor.

“A hazard is defined as a danger to others and this made me feel like an inhuman creature that should not be part of society.

“It was the biggest example of discrimination I have faced in my entire life and it shouldn’t have happened.”

Nate said he left the club as he didn’t want to ruin his friend’s birthday by getting the whole group thrown out.

“I’m not trying to dissuade people from Rosies,” he said. “It’s a great place to have a night out but I’m just trying to point out the way they handled this situation is ignorant and disrespectful.”

A spokeswoman for Rosies said the safety of their customers was always a top priority.

“Complimentary entry was permitted through a private door to our ‘first floor’ area to enable the young man who was in a wheelchair to enjoy some time with his friends in our club,” the spokesperson said.

“The group were advised that this was the only area suitable for a wheelchair and that this area of the club would close around 12.30am.

“As customers then moved to the second floor the gentleman concerned expressed his displeasure when being asked to leave.

“The safety of our customers is paramount and given the building is listed and has no lift, or emergency ramp facilities, for the safety of the customer concerned, and our other guests, he was respectfully asked to leave at the time advised upon entry.”

Read the full article online: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/disabled-man-asked-leave-nightclub-6541383

Roisin Norris

Hi I’m Roisin Norris, Digital Marketing Executive at DisabledGo and I will be uploading blogs and news for you all to read.

More posts from author    ……………….’

 

DWP bases benefit decisions on allegations about the assessors’ character rather than evidence

Black men accuse Houston bar of demanding a $20 cover charge while letting white people in for free

It appears racism is still abound in the USA, who said it is the land of the free.

http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1&isUI=1

McDonald’s race row as store boss is heard telling zero hours worker she can’t get any extra work because she is BLACK

Original post from Mail Online

‘…………..By IMOGEN CALDERWOOD FOR MAILONLINE

 

• Divine Tenn, 18, had worked at the Erdington McDonald’s since March 2014
• She noticed her number of shifts per week was slashed in July this year
• Told by her boss it was because two black workers were ‘underperforming’
• She was working on a zero hour contract to save up to go to university  

McDonald’s has found itself at the centre of a race row after an assistant manager told an employee she wouldn’t get any extra shifts because she is black.

Divine Tenn, 18, was working at a West Midland McDonald’s on a zero hour contract when she tried to sign up for some extra shifts.

But she was told by her boss Jaskaran Singh Khela that instructions had been handed down that meant no shifts were being given out to the restaurant’s 20 black workers.

Divine was told the reason for the change was that two black workers were ‘underperforming’.

‘Horrified’: McDonald’s worker Divine Tenn, 18, from Tipton, West Midlands, was told that she would not be given any more shifts because two black members of staff were ‘underperforming’

‘I am absolutely disgusted that a company so big and who I have worked hard for for over a year could treat me like this,’ she said, speaking from her home in Tipton.

‘I can’t believe that racism still exists in this day and age.

‘It’s been really upsetting for me and the other black members of staff, who now feel too uncomfortable to work there.

Divine began working for the Fort Parkway restaurant, in Erdington, in March 2014, so she could save up to go to university.

When she first started working she was given 20 hours of shifts per week, for £5.19 an hour, and was able to earn around £400 a month.

But in July 2015 she first noticed something was wrong, when she was refused two shifts by the assistant manager.

‘I spoke to some of the other employees, who happened to be black, and they said they hadn’t been allowed to pick up any shifts either.

‘I decided to call my assistant manager to find out what was going on.

‘My assistant manager said a couple of the other black members of staff had not been doing very well at work, so all of the black staff were being banned from taking on shifts.

‘I was horrified… and because I wasn’t on a proper contract I had no rights and there wasn’t anything I could do.’

In an audio recording of the phone call, Mr Khela, 26, can be heard telling Divine that ‘the black people can’t take no shifts because they’re not performing’.

Hard worker: Divine had been working at the Fort Parkway restaurant, in Erdington, since March 2014, but first noticed her shifts had been slashed in July this year

‘Discriminated against’: Divine handed in her resignation and complained to McDonald’s but didn’t receive a response. She was working on a zero hour contract to save up to go to university

Divine added: ‘I’ve always worked hard and covered as many shifts as possible while I’ve been saving up to go to university.

‘To be discriminated against like this because I am black is shocking and depressing.’

She continued: ‘I was so disgusted I handed in my resignation that day, I refuse to work for a company that doesn’t value me because of the colour of my skin.’

Although Divine has reported the incident to McDonald’s, she is still waiting for a response.

A McDonald’s spokesman said: ‘We took this incident extremely seriously and launched a full investigation.

‘The employee concerned no longer works for the company and support is in place for the members of staff affected by the incident.

‘McDonald’s is an inclusive employer and any incidences of discrimination against our employees will not be tolerated.’  ……….’

 

 

 

Gay Scots still facing prejudice and inequality

Original post from The Scotsman

‘…………By SCOTT MACNAB

Gay Scots still face widespread prejudice in their everyday lives. Picture: Jane Barlow

Gay Scots still face widespread prejudice going about their everyday lives, a major new report today reveals.

The discrimination ranges from homophobic attitudes and comments to violent acts of physical or sexual abuse, according to the Scottish LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) equality report today.

Despite major advances in recent years such as civil partnerships and the introduction of gay marriage last year, a majority of LGBT people are still wary of being open about their sexual identity with their family or when at work.

 The Scottish Government is now being urged to publish an LGBT equality and human rights strategy and action plan, against which progress can be measured.

Tom French, of the Equality Network, which published today’s report, says it reveals the “stark reality of the prejudice, discrimination and other forms of disadvantage” that LGBT people continue to face in Scotland.

He said: “It is clear that while we have made welcome progress in recent years, there is still much more to do before LGBT people will experience real equality in their day-to-day lives.

“The scale of the challenge is considerable and with the next Scottish Parliament election rapidly approaching, we will be looking to the Scottish Government, and all the political parties, to set out clear plans for how they will tackle inequality and make Scotland a fairer and more equal place for LGBT people to live.”

The Equality Network says it will now be calling on all Scotland’s political parties to set out firm manifesto commitments on LGBT equality ahead of the next Scottish Parliament elections in May.

 Nine out of ten people said that LGBT people continue to face inequality in Scotland, while almost all said more needs to be done to tackle prejudice and discrimination. The Scottish Government, councils and public services are seen as having lead responsibility for tackling this.

The report is based around the views of more than 1,000 people, of whom 34 per cent were gay men, 22 per cent were gay women, and 15 per cent were bisexual.

It was conducted between 2012 and 2013. The experiences of LGBT people vary significantly across Scotland, with those living in rural parts of the country reporting a significantly worse experience than those living in urban areas.

Incidents reported by LGBT people ranged from homophobic, biphobic and transphobic comments and attitudes (82 per cent), to verbal abuse (68 per cent), physical attack (16 per cent) sexual assault (7 per cent), crimes against property (12 per cent), and discriminatory treatment when accessing services (25 per cent) and in employment (24 per cent).

 A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “Despite the significant progress made in relation to LGBT equality, particularly in recent years, we are aware of the inequality still facing LGBT people and communities today. There is no place for any homophobic, biphobic or transphobic prejudice or discrimination in modern day Scotland or anywhere else.”

She added: “This government is one committed to promoting a more equal society which values Scotland’s diverse communities and the important role they play in enriching Scotland socially, culturally and economically.”   …………..’

Campaigner celebrates second victory in battle over court discrimination

Original post from Disabled Go News

‘…………….

A disabled campaigner has succeeded in proving that he was discriminated against – twice – by the courts service.

Doug Paulley, a wheelchair-user, has taken a string of cases against public bodies and companies for alleged discrimination under the Equality Act.

But his latest victory has given him particular satisfaction, as he represented himself in court against a highly-paid government barrister.

This latest case concerned the treatment he received from the courts service while trying to resolve another legal case, in which he had sued several companies for providing misleading and contradictory information after he tried to book accessible train travel to a family funeral in north London in May 2013.

When one of the public transport companies refused to negotiate a settlement, the case ended up in Leeds County Court.

But Paulley was confronted with a series of access issues when he attended the court for a hearing, including misinformation from court staff about the provision of accessible parking spaces, the failure to provide a working accessible toilet, and the lack of a hearing loop in court.

The Ministry of Justice settled the case out of court last September, paying him £3,000 damages.

But the discrimination being faced by Paulley was not yet over.

A judge had agreed that the transport case should enter mediation, but the courts service allegedly refused to provide Paulley with an accessible alternative to telephone mediation, even though he has a hearing impairment.

He insisted that the only fair and reasonable alternative was to have a face-to-face meeting.

The courts service only backed down when Paulley told them he was taking them to court.

And when the mediation eventually took place, he says, he was confronted with an inaccessible room. They moved to another room, but there was no hearing loop.

This time, he claims, the accessible toilet was out-of-order, and the second accessible toilet in the court building had no soap dispenser.

Now Paulley has been told he has won his case against the courts service for refusing to provide an accessible alternative to telephone mediation, although he said the judge found there was no discrimination in the other access issues he faced before the hearing.

This time, he was awarded £600 compensation for injury to his feelings, the lowest level possible.

An HM Courts and Tribunals Service spokeswoman said in a statement: “HM Courts and Tribunals Service takes every reasonable step to ensure that access to our information and services is accessible for court users with disabilities.

“Our staff have been reminded of our reasonable adjustment policy and the equality and diversity guidance issued to all court and tribunal staff.”

She said later that, as the first claim was settled out of court, there was no ruling on whether discrimination had taken place.

She was not able to comment on Paulley’s latest victory in time for the deadline set by Disability News Service.

Paulley said his case demonstrated one of the key problems with the Equality Act: that victims of discrimination have to enforce the act themselves.

He said: “You can’t complain to a statutory body and ask them to enforce the act. In these cash-strapped days, it’s nigh on impossible to get legal aid.

“Even with a no-win, no-fee solicitor, funding is an issue due to recent changes in court rules.

“So our right under the act to reasonable adjustments to reduce or remove the barriers we experience can generally only be enforced by us, ourselves, without representation.

“If we don’t do it, then nobody will, and the Equality Act is purposeless and powerless.”

He added: “There is a particular irony that the [courts service] itself has many access problems.

“It is not good that when we do try to enforce our rights through the courts, we experience barriers caused by the [courts service].

“I am glad to have had the opportunity to force the [courts service] to improve on this issue, albeit probably only in my corner of the country.”

Paulley is now writing a guide called Legal Suage for Crips, on how to take companies and other organisations to court for disability discrimination without a solicitor.

The guide will eventually be published on his website.

News provided by John Pring at www.disabilitynewsservice.com

Aden

Hi I’m Aden, I work at DisabledGo as the Digital Marketing Manager and I manage the blog and all social media channels.

More posts from author  ……..’

 

What Will It Take To End Unequal Treatment Of Blacks By The Police?

Original post from News One

http://player.theplatform.com/p/BCY3OC/Ha5BggifMuHL/embed/select/media/q2GnSvs34bIb

The death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore police custody is just the latest in a long line of cases fueling the current #BlackLivesMatter protest movement, which beg a coordinated solution.

Earlier this year, Angela Rye, Principal of Impact Strategies, Rev. Lennox Yearwood from the Hip Hop Caucus, and Chanelle Hardy, National Urban League‘s senior vice president for policy, discussed what can be done to end unequal treatment by the U.S. justice system.

Yearwood said in order to save our young men from being killed “at the hands of those that are supposed to protect and serve, our community must look at how we use our institutions to combat the issue.”

It isn’t just simply the issue of coming forth and saying, “OK, let’s deal with this #BlackLivesMatter,” but how do we empower organizations at this point and time in the 21st century, like the Urban League, like the NAACP, like the Black Caucus, but also new entities like #HandsUpDontShoot, like #BlackLivesMatter — which is being run by Black women and young people — like so many interesting organizations that are coming up now to deal with the …crisis that we’re facing.

Rye reminded the group that the focus for #BlackLivesMatter can’t only be on one gender. “It’s just not Black men, it’s also Black women.”

Hardy believes that our community won’t be able to “resolve this issue without really addressing the fact that implicit bias is a fact of life.”

We have stopped the conversation prematurely [by] talking about racism and “are you or are you not racist,” but there is a real important conversation about knowing that you are a biased human being, what are those biases, accepting them and making decisions as a result.

Watch Rye, Yearwood, and Hardy discuss what steps our community must take, in the video clip above.

For more information about the State of Black America Report, visit www.StateOfBlackAmerica.org or use the hashtag #SaveOurCities.  ……….’

Families barred from Israeli park ‘for having bread on Passover’

Original post from The Times of Israel

‘……….TLV couple files discrimination complaint against Afula council, after guard allegedly turns away visitors with ‘forbidden’ foods

BY TAMAR PILEGGI  

WRITERS

Tamar Pileggi

Pita bread, not kosher for Passover. (Shutterstock/JTA)

A Tel Aviv couple filed a discrimination complaint with the Afula Municipality after witnessing families being denied entry to the city’s main park on Sunday, due to the fact that they had bread in their possession during the Passover holiday.

The couple said they were surprised to discover the guard at the municipal park’s entrance looking through visitors’ belongings to check for ‘hametz’ (leavened food), which Jewish law determines is not kosher for Passover and which observant Jews do not consume during the weeklong festival.

Michal Avivi, who described the incident in a (Hebrew) Facebook post as “embarrassing and shameful,” said families were being turned away at the entrance or were forced to eat their picnics outside the park’s premises.

“In a 2015 Israel, people’s bags are being searched for food. Not weapons or bombs, food,” Avivi wrote sarcastically.

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“I had a hard time walking past the people outside who were being punished and ignore the brutal trampling of democratic values right in front of me,” she continued.

According to Israeli law, it is forbidden for stores to “sell or present” hametz from noon on the eve of the Passover festival until sundown eight days later. The law is not generally applied to stores in communities where Jews are a minority.

The law does not apply to consumers. Most Israelis are not Orthodox, and almost a quarter are not Jewish.

Businesses selling hametz in violation of the law usually pay fines, and many restaurant owners decide the profits from selling hametz on Passover are well worth the fines paid, since traditionally Israelis who do not keep kosher have less choice on Passover and these restaurants have greater revenue during that week.

Passover began this year on Friday night, April 3.

RELATED TOPICS

• PASSOVER
• KOSHER FOR PASSOVER
• AFULA…………..’

Racial discrimination is alive and global

Phil Ebersole's Blog

Racial minorities, older workers, gays and lesbians and others face unfair discrimination all over the Western world.

That was the conclusion of a British economist named Judith Rich after studying field experiments in 17 countries using equally-qualified testers of different races, ages and so on.

The 70 studies have investigated if discrimination exists on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, obesity, caste and religion. Significant and persistent discrimination against the vast majority of these groups in all markets was found.

High levels of discrimination in hiring were recorded against ethnic groups, older workers, homosexuals and men applying to female-dominated jobs.

Immigrant groups were discriminated against despite being educated in schools, and proficient in the language, of the country of residence.

Middle Eastern and Moroccan groups across Europe and African-Americans in the United States were discriminated against when seeking jobs or housing.

An African-American applicant needed to…

View original post 313 more words