Discrimination can occur in a variety of settings:

The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 1992 aims to protect people with disability from discrimination. It is also meant to protect the family, friends and others associated with the person with disability.

Direct discrimination is when someone receives less favourable treatment because of their disability, and it can occur in these areas:

– employment;

– education and training;

– accessing goods and services (like shops, cafes or medical services);

– joining a club or association;

– sporting activities (including coaching);

– accommodation, such as buying a house or land, or renting a place to live.

– accessing public places (being able to enter and use public places, including toilets);

– using Commonwealth Government services (for example, Centrelink or voting places).

Indirect discrimination is when an organisation that has a policy that applies to everyone, but which impacts people with disability more severely than everyone else. For example, if a building can only be entered using a set of stairs this may be indirect discrimination, as people who use wheelchairs cannot enter.

Exceptions

In some cases, it is not against the law to discriminate against a person with disability. These include:

– if the person in unable to carry out the inherent requirements of the job. For example, if a person who was not able to get a driver’s license due to their disability applied for a job as a bus driver, then discrimination by the employer may not be against the law;

– if the employment of a person with disability means changes need to be made in the workplace that cause major difficulties or hardship to the employer. It is up to the employer to show how the changes would cause unjustifiable hardship. For example, it might not be unlawful discrimination if an employer needed to make structural changes to a workplace in order to employ someone with disability, but lacked the financial means to do so;

– insurance and superannuation providers may seek exemptions due to reasonable differences in the provision of policies for people with disability;

– there are some exemptions in the Disability Discrimination Act for employment in the defence forces;

– if the disability is an infectious disease and discrimination is necessary to protect the health of others;

– some competitive sports may be able to discriminate against a person with disability if it is not reasonable for the person wishing to play the sport to be able to do so. Sports may also discriminate for the person with disability, for example, Paralympic sports where people without disabilities are excluded from participating.

Examples of possible discrimination:

– Redevelopment of a workplace meant an existing ramp was replaced by stairs. An employee who used a wheelchair was therefore unable to use that part of the building unless he took a much longer route. The redevelopment had taken place without any consultation with employees or the public;

– A person with visual impairment who used an assistance dog phoned a restaurant to make a booking. She advised the restaurant she would be bringing her assistance dog with her, and was told dogs were not allowed in the restaurant;

A school excluded a pupil with Down Syndrome from an excursion to the museum as they believed he would not be able to participate in the activities.