Thursday 18 September 2003
Carers encouraged to make the most of discrimination legislation
Addressing the Carers Australian Annual Conference 'Caring Matters - a national debate' in Canberra today, Acting Disability Discrimination Commissioner, Dr Sev Ozdowski OAM said he would like to see all sections of the disability community achieving the most out of the discrimination legislation, including Australia's estimated 2.3 million unpaid carers.
Dr Ozdowski said there were concerns that carers of people with disabilities were unaware of the protection offered by the Disability Discrimination Act in advancing human rights for people with disabilities.
"There are indications that carers have made relatively limited use of the legislation and that some issues of particular interest to carers have not advanced as much as others," said Dr Ozdowski.
"The DDA protects associates of people with a disability such as family, friends, carers and co-workers if they are discriminated against because of that relationship. For example, it would be unlawful discrimination if a parent is refused a job because the employer assumes he or she will need time off work to look after a child with a disability.
"The main mechanism provided by the DDA for dealing with discrimination is the complaint process. For carers, this could involve complaints of discrimination as a carer, or person acting on behalf of another person who has been discriminated against, for example a carer can complain about discrimination experienced by the person they are caring for," the Commissioner said.
The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission will investigate any complaints received that are within its area of responsibility. Conciliation of a complaint may result in changes in policies or practices, job reinstatement or promotion, an apology, withdrawal of the complaint, payment of damages, and/or some other outcome.
"Surveys of people who have used the complaints mechanism indicate that most people who use it find the Commission's conciliation service accessible and valuable," Dr Ozdowski said.
"The main driver of change towards a more accessible and equal Australia remains the complaint process and the ability of people with disabilities to use it effectively to pursue their own aspirations."
Media contact: Paul Oliver (02) 9284 9618 or 0408 469 347 Last updated 18 September 2003.
