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Employment Contracts

21 May 2025 (Last updated 3 Dec 2025)

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Almost 1 in 5 people in Australian have a disability. People aged 15-64 with disability are more likely to be unemployed than those without disability. Nearly half of all employed people with disability reported they had experienced unfair treatment or discrimination by their employer due to their disability.

The lack of employer confidence and awareness has contributed to poor understanding of employing disabled people in Australia. In this guide for employers, we outline disability in the workplace, legislation, benefits of employing disabled people, and other key factors for employers to know.

Please note that the information below is general and is not intended to act as advice. If you need help with legal matters, consult a professional.

Disability in the workplace

The term ‘disability’ covers a variety of situations. The term ‘disability’ can be used to refer to several impairments and factors that contribute to a person’s inability to participate in certain roles or activities. Disability includes long-term physical, mental health, intellectual, neurological or sensory differences which, in interaction with various attitudinal and environmental barriers, may hinder full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.

People are considered to have a disability if they have a limitation, restriction or impairment, which has lasted, or is likely to last, at least for six months and restricts everyday activities. This includes:

  • Sensory - loss of sight, loss of hearing where communication is restricted, or an aid to assist with, or substitute for hearing is used, speech difficulties
  • Intellectual - difficulty learning or understanding things
  • Physical - shortness of breath or breathing difficulties that restrict everyday activities, blackouts, seizures or loss of consciousness, chronic or recurrent pain or discomfort that restricts everyday activities, incomplete use of arms or fingers, difficulty gripping or holding things, incomplete use of feet or legs, restriction in physical activities or in doing physical work, disfigurement or deformity
  • Psychosocial - nervous or emotional condition that restricts everyday activities, mental illness or condition requiring help or supervision, memory problems or periods of confusion that restrict everyday activities, social or behavioural difficulties that restrict everyday activities
  • Head injury, stroke or acquired brain injury - head injury, stroke or acquired brain injury, with long-term effects that restrict everyday activities

Myths about disabled employees

There are several misconceptions and myths about disabled employees that hinder employees from considering them. Managers and business owners are often concerned that productivity benefits might not be enough to justify additional costs of hiring and recruiting disabled employees. The cost to accommodate employees with disability found perceived benefits of workplace adjustments for people with various types of disability, including increase in profits, primarily through cost of savings of not having to re-hire and re-train new workers.

Studies have reported the cost-effectiveness of hiring people with disability. Employers reap $40 savings for every $1 invested in workplace adjustments. Another common myth is that disabled employees have a high turnover rate. But research has indicated that employees with disability stay on the job 4 months longer on average than those without disability. There are also improvements in productivity, retention, and inclusivity.

Health and safety

Workplace health and safety is of crucial importance to business owners and employers. The lack of understanding around disability in the workplace means that employers think that there is a higher risk of injury for employees with disability. But it’s the opposite. Studies reveal that presence of employees with disability improved workplace safety. People with disability have 34% fewer accidents than other employees. People with cognitive impairments in the hospitality industry also reported an above average safety record. By providing workplace adjustments to people with disabilities, you effectively improve overall workplace safety for everyone.

Disability in the workplace and legislation

The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA) makes it unlawful to discriminate against a person, in many areas of public life, including employment, education, getting or using services, renting or buying a house or unit, and accessing public places, because of their disability.

The protection in relation to discrimination in employment applies to all stages of the employment lifecycle including:

  • Arrangements in relation to who should be offered a job.
  • Determining who should be offered a job.
  • The terms and conditions of any job offer.
  • Access to opportunities for promotion, transfer, training or other benefits.
  • Dismissal.

A person with a disability has a right to the same employment opportunities as a person without a disability.

The DDA provides that in some circumstances treating someone differently because of their disability will not be against the law. This is known as an exemption or exception. For example, the DDA provides that it may not be against the law to refuse to employ a person with a disability, if because of their disability, they cannot perform the inherent requirements of a job. However, the DDA also states that employers must consider how a person with disability could be provided with reasonable adjustments to help them do the job. An adjustment is reasonable if it does not impose ‘unjustifiable hardship’ on the employer.

Inherent requirements

It is not against the law to refuse someone a job, if because of their disability, they can’t perform the ‘inherent requirements’ of the position. In other words, a person must be able to carry out the essential duties of the job. For example, a person with low vision may not be able to meet the ‘inherent requirements’ of a job as a delivery driver.

Recruiting disabled employees

It’s vital that employers avoid discrimination against disabled employees in the workplace and during the recruitment process. It starts right with the job description as the description and candidate specifications may needlessly exclude or discourage a highly qualified disabled candidate. There are some other key factors you can remember while writing a fair job description:

  • Group criteria into ‘essential’ and ‘desirable’ aspects.
  • Rank criteria in order of importance.
  • Don’t include blanket requirements or exclusions in relation to health and safety.
  • Specify qualifications only where there is a genuine occupational requirement.

All job advertisements should be inclusive as possible to ensure that disabled candidates are not excluded.

During an interview, be careful when it comes to asking questions about a candidate’s health. If the candidate has stated they have an illness or disability in the interview and they’re unsuccessful, they may claim they were discriminated against based on their condition. Identify the ways your organisation can make the workplace an inclusive, diverse, and fair workplace.

The benefits of employing disabled workers

Employing disabled people can allow organisations to attract new skills and gain valuable perspectives. There are several benefits a business gets when they consider expanding their workforce and employ disabled workers.

Improved client relations - Having a workforce that mirrors real people and reflects Australia’s diversity will improve client relations and make your customers feel seen and supported.
Inclusivity - By employing disabled people, you are no longer relying on buzz words but taking constructive action and enhancing inclusivity in the workplace.
Social benefits - There are social benefits to employing disabled people such as lower tax burdens, greater social equality, and improves productivity.

Providing reasonable accommodation measures

When an employer is made aware of a disability at work, they need to make reasonable accommodations to support the specific needs of that employee.

Talking directly with an employee is the most effective way to establish a working arrangement that maximises their productivity, while improving and maintaining job satisfaction.

In the eyes of the law, this is called reasonable accommodation and can involve one or more of the following:

  • Making modifications or changes that allow the employee to receive equal opportunities in the workplace.
  • Implementing physical changes to the workplace (e.g. Providing easy access to the building).
  • Modifying how the job is done (e.g. Giving part of the task to someone else or providing facilities to make the job easier).
  • Any changes that do not unreasonably disrupt the activities of the employer.

Keep in mind, while these changes should be an effective means to help the employee – they should not come at the expense of disrupting the workplace or causing unreasonable financial distress to the business.

Create inclusive workplaces with Peninsula

The wellbeing of any organisation depends on the people who work there. A positive workforce encapsulates people with a diverse range of skills and experience who come from a variety of backgrounds.

By looking at disability in the workplace as an opportunity for growth, not a ‘problem’ to be dealt with, organisations can expand the diversity of their team and encourage a positive and welcoming environment for their business.

Peninsula advises on making reasonable adjustments for disabled employees. Call our team for expert advice.

This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute as business or legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. It does not take into consideration your specific business, industry or circumstances. You should seek legal or other professional advice regarding matters as they relate to you or your business. To the maximum extent permitted by law, Peninsula Group disclaim all liability for any errors or omissions contained in this information or any failure to update or correct this information. It is your responsibility to assess and verify the accuracy, completeness, and reliability of the information in this article.

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Employment Contracts

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Employment Contracts

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Employment Contracts

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An enterprise agreement is negotiated within one or more specific businesses, rather than determined by the Fair Work Commission for an entire industry or occupation. But it still needs Fair Work Commission approval before it can come into effect. Generally, when you have an EA the award doesn’t apply, though some agreements do defer to the award or incorporate award provisions. Enterprise agreements can be tailored to meet the needs of a business or group of businesses and can include provisions regarding various matters, such as rates of pay, employment conditions and dispute resolution processes. The agreement cannot include anything unlawful, for example anything discriminatory. The minimum pay in the agreement still can’t be less than the base rate of pay for the classification under the award, and the National Employment Standards (NES) enshrined in the Fair Work Act will also continue to apply. The employees also need to be “better off overall” than they would have been under the award for the Fair Work Commission to approve the agreement. Enterprise bargaining process Employers, employees and their bargaining representatives are involved in the process of bargaining for a proposed enterprise agreement in good faith. Once an employer decides to initiate the bargaining for an EA, they are required to take all reasonable steps to notify any existing employees who will be covered by the EA of their right to be represented throughout the negotiations. Once the notice of employee representational rights has been issued, negotiations can commence. There are four steps to the bargaining process: Notice of Representational Rights. Commencement of Good Faith Bargaining. Voting and Access Period to the finalised EA. Approval by the Fair Work Commission. Grow your business with Peninsula Peninsula has worked with thousands of businesses in Australia providing expert advice on employment relations and workplace health and safety. We offer access to resources, tools, documents, and software to all our clients. Contact our team to find out how we can help you. This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute as business or legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. It does not take into consideration your specific business, industry or circumstances. You should seek legal or other professional advice regarding matters as they relate to you or your business. To the maximum extent permitted by law, Peninsula Group disclaim all liability for any errors or omissions contained in this information or any failure to update or correct this information. It is your responsibility to assess and verify the accuracy, completeness, and reliability of the information in this article.

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