Universally Designing the Public Sector Workplace: Technology as Disability Access

Disability and the Unionized Workplace

“…While many union contracts address disability issues (Basas, 2013), systematic information on the relation of disability to unionization levels and union policies is not available.…”

“…Looking more broadly, Basas (2013) identifies two tensions in union policies regarding disability. The first tension is between treating disability as a civil rights issue (consistent with the social model) and protecting the employment of union workers who experience disability.…”

“…In examining collective bargaining agreements at AFSCME, Basas concluded that policies enacted in contracts reflect the medical model of disability which views disability exclusively as a health or medical problem to be cured, since these agreements only address sick leave, workers' compensation, and injuries which are factors that mostly relate to the onset of disability at work. The emphasis does not seem to be on inclusion and changing the workplace environment in line with the ADA's principal objective of equal access and opportunity (Basas, 2013). Moreover, according to Basas, another tension exists between individual interests that are protected by the ADA, and "the collective good position of union representation where individual interests are submitted to the needs of the whole" (p.75).…”

“…As a result, some claim that collective bargaining agreements may often hurt workers with disabilities since they lack provisions demonstrating true inclusion, which may come from resistance by some unions and employers to the ADA and lack of understanding about disability as a social category (Basas, 2013;Williams-Whitt, 2007). For example, no public-sector collective bargaining agreements in the sample examined by Basas (2013) included technologybased provisions to accommodate workers with disabilities, despite many technology-based accommodation requests from workers with disabilities.…”

“…Based on these tensions, Basas (2013) raises questions about whether unions improve the labor market status of workers with disabilities, and notes that they may mainly benefit workers whose onset of disability happens at work. She claims that even for current workers, however, there is room for more support.…”