The Government should, in cooperation with people with disabilities and their representative organisations, introduce a cost of disability allowance which reflects the principles of equity identified by Blind Citizens Australia.

That the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 be amended to allow electronic voting.

Public sector agencies should review publication procedures to ensure that all documents are available in a range of alternative formats at the same time as they are made available to the general population.

That the Department of Family and Community Services establish an adaptive equipment subsidy scheme as proposed by the Australian Blindness Forum.

That the Department of Family and Community Services provide a once off increase to Blind Citizens Australia’s national secretariat funding of 15% over and above indexation. Further, that the Department increase Blind Citizens Australia’s Program Support Grant by 10%.

That the Department of Family and Community Services review the operation of the Jobs in Jeopardy program in relation to the services provided by CRS, with particular reference to the timeliness of the service and its client focus.

The Minister for Education urgently introduce the DDA Education Standards into Parliament.

The Department of Education, Science and Training should work with State and Territory Education Departments and Blind Citizens Australia to develop a curriculum which provides blind children with essential blindness skills while ensuring they have non-discriminatory access to the general core curriculum and to extra curricular activities.

1. Introduction

Blind Citizens Australia (BCA) is the united voice of blind and vision impaired Australians. Our mission is to achieve equity and equality through our empowerment, by promoting positive community attitudes, and by striving for high quality and accessible services which meet our needs.

We have fifteen branches across Australia in metropolitan, regional and rural locations. Our 3,600 (approximate) members come from all States and Territories and include people from various ethnic and linguistic groups.

Through their involvement in local branches and our state and national publications, our members gain opportunities for peer support and social interaction and access to blindness-specific information and advocacy support. Our national, Victorian and Western Australian offices provide information and individual and systemic advocacy support, and our NSW office a limited information service, to all people who are blind or vision impaired.

 

2. Terminology

The term public sector agency is used to signify a Commonwealth department, agency or statutory authority.

The term blind is used to refer to people who are blind or vision impaired.

 

3. Civil Participation

• Commonwealth Disability Strategy Principle

1. Income Support

1. Voting

The cornerstone of any democracy is the right to cast a secret vote in an environment that is free from political bias or prejudice. The International Disability Alliance has identified the right to "vote by secret ballot and engage fully in the political process" as one of the "fundamental freedoms to which all human beings are entitled" (2002:1).

It is therefore a serious undermining of the civil rights of people who are blind that they have access to neither a secret ballot nor the means to cast a ballot independently.

There is no justification for this discriminatory practice to continue. In 2001, the Australian Capital Territory Electoral Commission successfully trialled electronic voting, using a secure system incorporating bar codes and screen reading software. The Electoral Commission’s analysis of the trial was positive.

The trial allowed people who are blind to cast truly independent ballots. Another advantage of the system was that, unlike internet based voting and the paper-based system trialled in Victoria in 2002, people who are blind or who have a print disability could cast their vote on election day, allowing them to fully engage in the election process. Other benefits of the system included the provision of voting information in 12 different languages to assist people from non-English speaking backgrounds, the elimination of unintentional voter error and more reliable and speedy counting of ballots (Elections ACT 2002:1).

The Electoral Commission analysis of the trial concluded that the system could be continued with only a minimal impact on the cost of elections; indeed the Commission suggested that cost offsets could result in a reduction in the cost of an election (2002:3)

The system utilised in the ACT should be adopted federally, at least on a trial basis.

1. Recommendation 2

That the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 be amended to allow electronic voting.

2. Recommendation 3

1. Access to Information

 

 

Access: people with disabilities should have access to information in appropriate formats about the programs and services they use

- Commonwealth Disability Strategy Principle

 

1. Access to Citizenship Information

1. Audio Description

In theatres and museums and when watching television, film, and video presentations, people who are blind are at a disadvantage because we cannot see essential information such as new scenes, settings, costumes, body language or sight gags. Audio description overcomes this disadvantage by providing a narration that describes what the sighted person takes for granted.

The Australian Caption Centre is seeking support from the Department of Family and Community Services for a pilot project it is undertaking of audio description on DVD. Blind Citizens Australia supports the audio description on DVD pilot project because it would promote independence, choice and self-reliance for people who are blind, and open up a world of information which is currently out of our reach.

1. Recommendation 5

That the Department of Family and Community Services fund the Australian Caption Centre audio description on DVD pilot project.

 

2. Harnessing New Technologies for the Delivery of Information

The advent of digital technology has revolutionised the way people who are blind can access information. In Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, people who are blind are utilising innovative methods of accessing information which are faster and easier to use and give the user the freedom to choose the format in which they want to read information.

Australia is already at least three years behind these countries in terms of the adoption and use of digital technology and each day we delay shifting to digital production and distribution of information, we fall further behind and waste more resources. Digital technology benefits the consumer, the producers of information and the governments that fund the production of materials in alternative formats. The technology already exists. We have only to implement it.

The Commonwealth can and must play a role in promoting the adoption of digital technology. Through the Print Disability Subsidy Program, the Department of Family and Community Services funds the production of materials in alternative formats. Continued receipt of this funding should be conditional on producers moving to adopt digital technology within three years.

1. Recommendation 6

The Department of Family and Community Services make continued receipt of funding under the Print Disability Subsidy Program conditional on producers of alternative format materials adopting digital technology by 2007-2008.

To read files produced digitally, people who are blind need a playing device. There are currently several competing designs for such a device. The Department of Family and Community Services should fund a research project into the competing designs. Further, the Commonwealth should subsidise the cost of purchasing digital players for people who are blind. This investment will be offset by reduced demand for the Commonwealth’s Postal Subsidy Program.

2. Recommendation 7

The Department of Family and Community Services should fund a research project into how people who are blind can best access digital information.

3. Recommendation 8

1. Access to Equipment

People who are blind use a range of adaptive equipment to compensate for their lack of sight. This equipment may be as simple as a cassette player to listen to taped information, or as complex as a program to write documents in braille and an embosser to print them. It includes an extensive array of talking products such as scales (bathroom and kitchen) and watches and clocks, and other general household items like liquid level indicators and braille labelling machines.

Students and the unemployed are in particular need of access to equipment. Without private access to a computer and adaptive hardware and software, a student who is blind will not succeed to the same level as their peers. They will also be disadvantaged in any practical/work experience components of their course. Without equipment, people who are looking for work will not only be unable to read job vacancy notices, but will be unable to practically demonstrate to potential employers how they can perform a job.

Unfortunately, much of the adaptive equipment used by people who are blind is expensive and/or requires frequent upgrades. We need a subsidy scheme to assist people who are blind to purchase adaptive equipment and an adaptive equipment pool, in addition to a cost of disability allowance (see Section 3.1).

1. Recommendation 9

That the Department of Family and Community Services establish an adaptive equipment subsidy scheme as proposed by the Australian Blindness Forum.

2. Recommendation 10

That the Department of Family and Community Services establish an adaptive equipment pool which people who are blind can use, similar to that available to veterans who are blind.

 

1. Public Sector Agency Equipment

There is under utilised potential to implement the Commonwealth Disability Strategy through the Government’s role as a major purchaser of services and equipment. In the United States of America, Section 508 of the US Rehabilitation Act requires that Federal agencies' electronic and information technology be accessible to people with disabilities (see http://www.section508.gov/). This has had a dramatic effect internationally on the availability of accessible equipment, from photocopiers and microwaves to software.

1. Recommendation 11

The Commonwealth Government should introduce legislation similar to Section 508 of the US Rehabilitation Act to require all products and services purchased by public sector agencies, and organisations they fund, to be accessible to all people with disabilities.

 

2. Advocacy

• Commonwealth Disability Strategy Principle

1. Blind Citizens Australia Advocacy

As a peak disability advocacy body, Blind Citizens Australia plays a valuable role as a conduit between the Government and people who are blind. In the last year, we have conducted Australia wide consultations on a number of federal issues, including the Government’s Building a simpler system consultation paper on reform of the income support system, the development of Standards under the Disability Discrimination Act, the accessibility of tertiary education and the accessibility of the health care system. We consistently provide advice and feedback of the highest quality to the Government, and provide exceptional information and advocacy services to Australians who are blind. This is due in no small part to the quality of our staff.

Between 2001/2002 and 2002/2003, Award changes meant that our national advocacy staff salaries increased by 9%. In the same year, the cost of renting accessible premises which are centrally located and close to public transport increased by 34%. The cost of providing information and correspondence in a range of formats, including braille, large print, audio and electronic and operating a free call number has also risen. This is well in excess of the 1.7% funding increase that we received from the Department of Family and Community Services for that period.

Our contract with the Department of Family and Community Services requires us to comply with the Commonwealth Disability Service Standards – that is, employ staff under Award conditions and operate in such a way that our services can be used by all Australians. Blind Citizens Australia is a model organisation in terms of accessibility – but this comes at a cost – a cost which the Commonwealth must also shoulder.

In addition, Blind Citizens Australia receives $40,000 per annum through the Department of Family and Community Services’ Program Support Grant, to help offset the costs of providing materials in accessible formats to people who are blind. In the last year, Blind Citizens Australia has successfully assisted people living in regional and rural areas to establish peer support networks. The members of the networks are separated by vast distances, making meeting face-to-face unviable and leaving telecommunications as the only avenue by which they can meet. Blind Citizens Australia offers a limited telebridge service, but we do not have the capacity to make this extensively available to rural and isolated members because of our limited resources. With additional financial support from the Department of Family and Community Services, we can ensure that people who are blind living in regional and rural locations have the same opportunities for peer support as their urban dwelling colleagues.

1. Recommendation 12

1. Employment
1. Background

Employment is crucial to people’s emotional, social and economic wellbeing. Individuals who are blind are employed in a range of occupations, such as telephonist, legal officer, policy worker and computer programmer. However, people who are blind still face systemic discrimination at each stage of the employment cycle. UK and USA data show that only 25% of people who are blind and workforce aged are employed (see Dryden 2001: 1-3 and American Foundation for the Blind 1996: 1). Australian research indicates an even lower proportion of people who are blind are employed, with a rate of only 21% (Royal Blind Society 1996:101).

Research also indicates that people who lose their sight as adults are highly likely to lose their job as a result - 70-90% of blind people who were unemployed had been employed before they lost their sight and the majority left their employment involuntarily (Dryden 2001: 2). This compares unfavourably to figures for the general population, which showed that 67% of people who had been retrenched in the previous three years had found employment (ABS 2002: 1).

Research by Blind Citizens Australia has reinforced how difficult it is for people who have lost their sight to re-enter the work force. This systemic discrimination has a profound impact on an individual’s self esteem as these quotes demonstrate:

"I felt really very bad… I felt useless and hopeless and stayed home … I thought well, I have no place in this world…"

"it leaves me with a really bad taste in my mouth… it was very crushing.."

"… no pension or redundancy or whatever can compensate for the fact that you don’t do a day’s work."

This represents a significant waste of human capital. People who are blind possess a wide range of knowledge, skills and experience - talents which are lost to the community through discrimination. Clearly, urgent action to address the barriers in employment retention and job seeking is needed.

 

2. Helping People who are Blind to Stay Employed

The Department of Family and Community Services administers the Jobs in Jeopardy program, which supports workers with disabilities at risk of losing their jobs. Part of this support is provided on a subcontract basis by the Commonwealth Rehabilitation Service (CRS).

When a person’s job is in jeopardy because of disability, time is clearly of the essence. Without urgent attention and action it will be virtually impossible for a person to continue to perform their duties at a standard that is acceptable. Quick attention can also assist to keep relations between a staff member with a disability and his or her employer open and productive.

Despite this, Blind Citizens Australia is aware of several cases of people who are blind experiencing lengthy delays when seeking assistance from CRS, even in situations categorised as a Job in Jeopardy. Further, it is our experience that CRS services are not client focussed – our members have reported finding that their training and accommodation preferences were ignored in CRS assessments.

1. Recommendation 13

That the Department of Family and Community Services review the operation of the Jobs in Jeopardy program in relation to the services provided by CRS, with particular reference to the timeliness of the service and its client focus.

 

3. Work Experience

People who are blind find it difficult to gain hands-on work experience or volunteer/ unpaid positions because of discrimination and the prohibitive cost of workplace modifications. Young people who are blind are particularly disadvantaged in the labour market because traditional avenues of gaining work experience are not available to them, for example, working at a fast food outlet or a retail store. A scheme whereby commercial and not for profit organisations identify positions that can be filled by people who are blind on a short term basis is required. The scheme would provide the organisations and staff with technological and other support. The scheme could particularly focus on those industries which are predicted to experience most employment growth in the future, identifying any barriers to people who are blind taking up employment opportunities in those industries and working with employers to overcome discriminatory attitudes.

1. Recommendation 14

That the Departments of Family and Community Services and Employment and Workplace Relations work with commercial and non-Government organisations and Blind Citizens Australia to institute a traineeship program for people who are blind in those industries predicted to experience employment growth in the future.

 

4. Mentoring

People who are blind not only experience great difficulty obtaining and retaining employment, but also have severely limited access to promotion and opportunities to act in higher positions. Having access to a mentor who has succeeded in a particular field can assist people to identify options for career advancement and to take advantage of the experience of their peers.

Blind Citizens Australia used to run an Employment Information Service – a national mentoring program that matched blind people with skills and work experience in particular areas with blind people who were seeking to gain skills or employment in that area. The program was highly successful but unfortunately it did not attract ongoing funding.

1. Recommendation 15

The Department of Workplace Relations and Training fund Blind Citizens Australia to re-establish its national Employment Information Service.

 

5. Commonwealth Public Sector Employment

The Commonwealth public sector has a duty to act as a role model in relation to the employment of people with disabilities - a duty it has dramatically failed to meet in recent years. In 1992, 5.8% of the public sector were people with a disability. By 2001, this had declined to just 3.7%. People with a disability are over-represented in retrenchments from the public sector and remain concentrated in lower grade positions (Boling 2002).

In part, this is a reflection of the changing nature of employment within the public sector. Over recent years the proportion of positions filled in a year that are junior positions have fallen from 53% to just 15%. This reduction in the number of opportunities to enter the public sector at a junior level has impeded the employment of people with disabilities.

The fall also reflects the increased emphasis on multi-skilling within the workforce. Once public servants had access to secretarial and administrative support staff. Now, most public servants are expected to perform at least part of this work themselves. Multi-skilling has also meant that employees are expected to perform a range of different tasks within the same job, often in different locations. For example, in the one day a junior grade clerk may be expected to rotate between four duties: cashier, customer service, data entry and general administrative work, performing each duty at a different location and potentially using four different computers with four different customised computer programs.

These changes have made it significantly more difficult for people who are blind to gain and maintain employment. An employee who is blind may require secretarial support to ensure that documents are formatted correctly, they may need adaptive software to be loaded onto each computer they use, which may not be compatible with specialised computer programs, and they may use adaptive equipment which cannot easily be moved between work stations.

A genuine commitment to improving the employment of people who are blind will require Government agencies to organise work differently. It will require a stringent reassessment of the core duties of positions – is a driver’s licence really essential? It will require a reappraisal of the way that an employee’s productivity is measured – is volume of work the best measure of productivity? It will require the employment of a greater number of administrative and secretarial support staff.

1. Recommendation 16

Government agencies should review their workforce practices to identify positions that can be made more accessible to people with disabilities. The review should include a critical reappraisal of the core duties of all positions and the level of administrative support provided to employees. Where the duties of a position require a person to work in different areas, a realistic assessment of the workplace modifications that will be required to employ a person with a disability in that position must be done.

 

6. Public Sector Recruitment

In the past, the Government has successfully quarantined positions for indigenous people in order to increase their representation within the public sector.

The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations has predicted that government administration will be a growth area of employment in the future (DEWR 2003: 3). While much of this growth is expected to occur in local and state governments, the opportunity exists for the Commonwealth Government to again quarantine positions – this time to benefit people with disabilities.

1. Recommendation 17

That Government quarantine future public sector administration positions to be filled by people with disabilities.

In addition to this measure, more needs to be done to improve the general recruitment of people with disabilities into the public sector. The outsourcing of recruitment by public sector agencies has made it more difficult to ensure that people with disabilities are encouraged to apply for positions and that reasonable accommodation is taken into account when applicants are short-listed.

Possible strategies to address this include better targeting of recruitment advertisements to media accessed by people with a disability, and the strengthening of contracts with recruitment organisations to require them to actively encourage people with disabilities to apply for positions. These measures could be enhanced by setting targets for the recruitment of people with self-disclosed disabilities in contracts with recruitment organisations. These targets could apply to all stages of the recruitment process: the initial enquiry stage, submitting an application, short listing applicants and the offer of a position.

People who are blind face particular barriers applying for positions within the public sector as a consequence of the inaccessibility of recruitment materials. For example, people who are blind sitting the public sector entrance exam are unable to read and complete the exam in their preferred format.

2. Recommendation 18

Government agencies and the recruitment organisations they contract to should use non-traditional media to encourage people who have a disability to apply for the public sector. This should include using non-print based media, for example, the Radio for the Print Handicapped network.

3. Recommendation 19

Government agencies that outsource recruitment should revise their contracts to make explicit the requirement that recruitment organisations actively encourage expressions of interest and applications from people with disabilities. Targets for the participation of people with disabilities in the recruitment process should be included in the contracts.

4. Recommendation 20

The Australian Public Service Commission should, in cooperation with Blind Citizens Australia, review the recruitment processes used by Government agencies and the organisations they contract, to ensure that they are accessible to people who are blind.

 

7. Employment Retention

Government agencies cannot improve their retention rate for employees who are blind if they do not know the reasons they are leaving. It is essential that the Commonwealth improve its understanding of the way that workforce practices impact on people who are blind.

1. Recommendation 21

Government agencies should offer all staff with self-identified disabilities who resign or accept redundancies the opportunity to take part in an exit interview. A summary of the findings of the interview, suitably de-identified, should be provided to the Australian Public Service Commission for analysis. The analysis should be published widely and provided to peak disability organisations.

 

8. Supporting Users of Adaptive Technology

Employees who are blind may use adaptive computer hardware and software. Like other computer equipment, adaptive technology is not compatible with all computer systems and if an agency changes its computer system without considering this, employees can be left literally unable to work. Government agencies should implement procedures whereby the compatibility of new computer systems with the software and technology used by employees who have a disability is determined prior to its introduction. Government agencies should also establish internal support groups for users of adaptive technology.

1. Recommendation 22

All Government agencies should implement procedures to ensure that new computer technology is not introduced until it has been demonstrated to be compatible with the adaptive technology used by employees.

2. Recommendation 23

All Government agencies should establish internal support groups for staff who use adaptive technology or provide support to staff to access external groups.

 

2. Education

• Commonwealth Disability Strategy Principle

1. DDA Education Standards

Education is an investment in individuals and our society, and non-discriminatory access to education services is essential for people who are blind.

Blind Citizens Australia congratulates the Government for pushing ahead with the introduction of the DDA Education Standards despite the lack of support from most states and territories. We strongly support the introduction of Education Standards and believe that they will have significant benefit for students with print disabilities. We also believe the Standards will assist educational institutions to better understand what is legally required of them and provide the impetus for the provision of non-discriminatory educational services.

1. Recommendation 24

The Minister for Education urgently introduce the DDA Education Standards into Parliament.

 

2. Educational Materials in Alternative Formats

People who are blind are excluded from full participation in education by an emphasis on the visual provision of information. Despite the introduction of the Disability Discrimination Act in 1992, students are still expected to routinely spend substantial amounts of their time and energy compensating for the provision of information in an inaccessible format. The inaccessible design of many courses is forcing potential students to forgo their preferred course, to undertake a lesser subject load, and/or to perform less well, as the experience of our members show:

A welfare student was not provided with additional staff time for one-on-one assistance to learn sign language… A Social Sciences student studying externally stopped using her local library out of frustration because the staff offered such an inadequate service… there were also numerous examples of people not being provided with course materials in their preferred format…. with some students literally choosing their subjects on the basis of individual lecturers’ willingness to make their materials available in alternative formats (Blind Citizens Australia 2002: 4).

Education providers are also spending substantial resources on transcription services.

This is a poor use of student time and education resources and could largely be avoided through changes to the way that educational materials are initially produced, both by publishers and by education institutions. In the United States, legislation has been proposed which will require publishers to provide to a central body suitably formatted electronic copies of all texts published, avoiding the need for transcription services to retype texts. This will dramatically reduce the cost and time taken to produce materials in alternative formats for students.

Similarly, a move by education institutions to ensure that all educational materials produced by staff are saved in a common accessible electronic format would conserve considerable time and energy.

1. Recommendation 25

That the Attorney-General’s Department work with publishers, the Copyright Agency Limited, alternate format material producers and Blind Citizens Australia to identify a common accessible file format to be used by publishers.

2. Recommendation 26

That the Department of Education, Science and Training work with education institutions to promote the use of a common electronic file format for internal documents.

 

3. Respecting Individual Needs

Transcription is the process of taking printed material or material that is in an inaccessible electronic format, for example a PDF file, and converting it into a format that can be read by someone who is blind or has a print disability. There are five accessible formats: braille, large print (at least 16 point font), audio, e-text and disk. The latter two formats are read using screen reading software, screen magnification software, or a braille display.

Different formats are more or less suited to different types of student materials. Texts that can be read superficially and which are read linearly such as a textbook for background reading may be suited to e-text, disk or audio format. On the other hand, material that a student must study closely or which contains extensive referencing, complex diagrams or formulas may be more suited to braille or large print.

The most appropriate format for each text will also depend on the individual student’s eye condition and their skills, for example, using computer equipment or reading braille. These factors mean that one student may need their materials in a range of different formats.

Blind Citizens Australia has become increasingly that tertiary education institutions are compelling students to accept their educational materials in a particular format, solely because it is the cheapest format for the university to produce. At least one Australian university has proposed limiting available transcription services to electronic text in all cases, irrespective of student need. While Blind Citizens Australia is pursuing this particular case, students who are blind need greater safeguards to ensure that institutions respond to their needs, not the bottom line.

1. Recommendation 27

That the Department of Education, Science and Training make receipt of Higher Education Equity Program funding conditional on universities demonstrating that appropriate guidelines and processes are in place to guarantee students receive their materials in the format that best achieves their educational needs.

 

4. Braille Literacy and Numeracy

Braille is the primary form of literacy for people who are blind. People who have lost their sight and can no longer read are functionally illiterate. It is of great concern to Blind Citizens Australia that instruction in braille is not available to all children who need it and that the literacy needs of adults who have become blind are not recognised in Commonwealth literacy and numeracy programs.

1. Recommendation 28

The provision of quality braille instruction to blind children in schools should be included as part of the implementation of the agreed National Goals for Schooling in the Twenty-first Century.

2. Recommendation 29

That the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations work with Blind Citizens Australia and agencies providing instruction in braille and adaptive computer software to ensure students are eligible for the Language, Literacy and Numeracy Training Supplement.

3. Recommendation 30

That the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations work with Blind Citizens Australia and agencies providing instruction in braille and adaptive computer software to develop accredited courses specifically targeted at people from non-English speaking backgrounds.

5. Primary and Secondary Education

In addition to the general curriculum, children who are blind must learn essential blindness related skills, including braille, orientation and mobility skills, braille music, daily living skills, technology skills, numeracy skills using tools such as the abacus and map-reading skills. This additional blindness skills curriculum is clearly time consuming and needs to be explicitly incorporated into the child’s regular school curriculum.

To enhance young people’s ability to make a successful transition from school to post-secondary study, they must have minimum technological competencies. This is even more important for young people who are blind.

1. Recommendation 31

The Department of Education, Science and Training should work with State and Territory Education Departments and Blind Citizens Australia to develop a curriculum which provides blind children with essential blindness skills while ensuring they have non-discriminatory access to the general core curriculum and to extra curricular activities.

2. Recommendation 32

1. Health

The barriers to people who are blind accessing information are arguably nowhere more important than in the health system. After all, if we cannot read pharmaceutical information such as dosage and side effects, or cannot access consumer advisory information, our physical health is put directly at risk. A blind diabetic who cannot independently and confidently obtain a reading of his or her blood sugar level because the cost of a talking glucometer is prohibitive knows that every day they are risking serious health implications.

1. Recommendation 33

That the Department of Health and Ageing work with Blind Citizens Australia, pharmaceutical companies and medical colleges to improve the access of people who are blind to information about medicines.

2. Recommendation 34

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