Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 14 July 2021
100. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the way his Department and public bodies and agencies under his remit are implementing Action 32 of the National Disability and Inclusion Strategy 2017-2021 (details supplied). [38514/21]
View answerMy Department and the bodies under its aegis work closely with a range of key stakeholders and organisations in the implementation of the National Disability and Inclusion Strategy 2017-2021. As Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, I have policy responsibility for recruitment to the Civil Service. The Civil Service is strongly committed to equality of opportunity for all in terms of its recruitment and employment practices. This commitment is demonstrated in the Civil Service 2030 Renewal Strategy that was launched in May 2021.
The Public Appointments Services (PAS) is the principal recruiter for the Civil Service. PAS has established a dedicated Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Unit and embedded Diversity Champions throughout the organisation. In March 2021, PAS launched its first Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2021-2023 following extensive and ongoing engagements with NGOs.
Officials from my Department and PAS sit on the Implementation Group for the National Comprehensive Employment Strategy for the Employment of People with Disabilities 2015-2024. This national strategy commits to increase the percentage of staff with a disability from 3% to 6% by 2024 (presently 3% under the Disability Act 2005). This employment target is monitored by the National Disability Authority. At the end of 2019, 5.1% of civil servants self-declared as having a disability.
There are many positive examples of how my Department, working alongside key stakeholders in the Civil Service including PAS, has worked to promote civil service employment pathways for persons with a disability.
In partnership with AHEAD, the Willing Able Mentoring (WAM) Programme offers graduates with a disability a 6 month mentored paid work placement in either the private sector or Civil Service. My Department and PAS play a key role in driving the annual intakes of work placements across the Civil Service. To date, WAM has placed over 490 graduates, of which 47% (230) have been placements across 33 Departments / Offices. Over 80% of WAM graduates have subsequently secured longer-term employment upon completion of their WAM programme. Officials from my Department are presently scoping the possibility of a confined competition to create permanent civil service employment opportunities for graduates of the WAM programme.
Facilitated by the Houses of the Oireachtas Service in collaboration with two sponsor organisations, KARE and WALK, the Oireachtas Work Learning (OWL) Programme is an applied learning, development and socialisation programme for adults with an intellectual disability that was launched as a pilot programme in September 2018. The goal is to provide trainees with the skills, knowledge and ability to gain meaningful employment via the unique opportunity to gain practical work experience, as well as accredited learning over an 11 month period. Over a quarter of the initial OWL interns have since gone on to secure permanent civil service employment through confined competitions.
My Department also works closely with the National Disability Authority, as well as the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, on the Equality Budgeting Expert Advisory Group established to further guide the ongoing rollout of Equality Budgeting. Equality Budgeting has developed over recent years with a view to enhancing the role of resource allocation policies in advancing equality, reducing poverty and strengthening economic and social rights. Equality Budgeting was expanded in 2019 to further develop the gender budgeting elements and to broaden its scope to other dimensions of equality including poverty, socioeconomic inequality and disability.
In terms of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion within my own Department, the HR Unit developed a HR Strategy that has a focus on embracing and embedding a culture of diversity and inclusion across the Department through diversity initiatives and training. This has included the establishment of a vibrant cross-Divisional and cross-grade Diversity and Inclusion staff forum, the PERspectives Group. My Department has a Disability Liaison Officer (DLO) who supports new members of staff with a disability or existing staff who acquire a disability and raise awareness about disability. New hires receive the Code of Practice for the Employment of People with a Disability in the Irish Civil Service, a welcome letter from the Department’s DLO and FAQs on Disability prepared by the National Disability Authority.
The position in relation to the bodies under the aegis of my Department is set out in the table below.
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Office of Public Works (OPW) |
As part of the 2019 review of Section 25 of the Disability Act, OPW engaged in consultation workshops with user groups. This was carried out in partnership with the National Disability Authority. In conjunction with the National Disability Authority, facilitators Connect the Dots were appointed, on foot of a tender process. They had previously worked on a range of active engagement processes for Dublin City Council and other local authorities. It is now intended to use this experience to inform future similar active engagement opportunities as the situations require. As there is a specific set of skills and competencies required to do this, and in preparation for future active engagement consultation processes, OPW need to upskill OPW staff in-house and provide training in Active Engagement. This is essential if the OPW is to take this on in another programme which requires participation in active engagement. An additional requirement is the appointment of experts to guide OPW through the required processes. A dedicated consultative committee is in the process of being set up with key stakeholders from across the organisation. This is to ensure future engagement protocols can be agreed at high level and be established to have meaningful future results. |
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National Shared Services Office (NSSO) |
The NSSO are actively engaged with the Civil Service Disability Liaison Officers Network and engaged with other programmes such as the Willing Able and mentoring (WAM) Programme of Association for Higher Education Access & Disability (AHEAD). A Disability Liaison Officer (DLO) is appointed in the NSSO that actively engages with and supports the NSSO staff. |
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Public Appointments Service |
The PAS ED&I strategy was launched in March 2021. As part of the consultation process, PAS engaged with a wide range of stakeholders who represented people from across the diversity spectrum. In relation to disability, this included organisations such as the National Disability Authority, Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, Rehab, AHEAD, Dyslexia Ireland, WALK and Not so Different. PAS consistently engages with organisations and individuals in the disability space in seeking to improve services for people with disabilities. The Public Appointments Service also work closely with AHEAD in delivering the WAM programme for graduates with a disability, managing the recruitment process on an annual basis. PAS also work with the Houses of the Oireachtas, KARE and WALK in developing the OWL Programme. PAS collaborated with these stakeholders in producing a Guide to Inclusive Employment, based on their experience as OWL employers, which features the graduates perspective and experience of the programme. PAS have become a member of Open Doors, reinforcing its commitment to inclusive employment and creating pathways for marginalised people, including those with disabilities. It is planned to engage external expertise to conduct an ED&I audit, which will include consultation with candidates, including those with disabilities, to gain key insights into their candidate experience. PAS are also currently working on enhancing its service delivery for people with disabilities, based on a number of recommendations surfaced through workshops with staff and clients on the candidate journey for people with disabilities, from application to assignment stage. PAS build capacity and capability around disability on a regular and continuous basis, and recently developed an online Disability Awareness module which all staff were requested to complete. This is also incorporated into the suite of online resources which board members are required to complete before participating in a selection process. More recently, a CPD-certified four week training course concluded in July, with a large number of staff from across the organisation attending. This course was focused on equality and ensuring an understanding and awareness of how best to support candidates with a disability throughout the recruitment process and at assignment stage. |
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Office of the Ombudsman |
The Office of the Ombudsman has an appointed Access Officer in line with Section 26(2) of the Disability Act 2005. The Access Officer is responsible for providing, arranging or co-ordinating assistance to persons with disabilities who wish to access the services provided by the Office. They also acts as a point of contact for persons with disabilities who wish to access such services.. The Office also has a Public Sector Duty Committee which was established in 2018. The purpose of the committee is to oversee the office’s obligations under Section 42 of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014. This is the responsibility on public bodies to take positive actions to prevent discrimination, promote equality and protect the human rights of employees, customers and services users. The Access Officer is responsible, in collaboration with the Public Service Duty Committee and Corporate Services Unit, for ensuring access to services at all time that are in line with the provisions of the Disability Act. Some of the support measures in place include a wheelchair friendly workplace, the availability of needs assessments, hearing loops, assistive technologies and accessible communications. The Disability Act gives the Ombudsman the powers to examine complaints about Part 3 of the Act. This Part deals with access to public buildings (section 25), access to services (section 26), accessibility of services supplied to a public body (section 27), access to information (section 28), access to heritage sites (section 29) and ‘Sectoral plans’ (sections 32 to 37). This means a person can complain to the Office is they think a public body has not followed the law. For example, the Ombudsman can look into complaints about access to public buildings. The Ombudsman can also examine complaints about sectoral plans prepared under Section 31 of the Act. These are detailed statements produced by certain Government Ministers about services for persons with disabilities. Areas covered by sectoral plans include public transport, health services, vocational training, employment support services, housing and accommodation. |
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State Laboratory |
The State Laboratory does not provide a service to the public. Staff with disabilities and visitors with disabilities are consulted with individually. |
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Office of the National Lottery Regulator (ORNL) |
The ORNL does not actively engage with people with disabilities through consultative committees or other fora as it does not provide services directly to the public. The ORNL’s Customer Charter and Action Plan sets out how the Office meets the needs of people with disabilities who wish to call to its office. |
