We will conduct a UK-wide survey and interviews with disabled workers, employers and policy-makers to identify key features of inclusive remote/hybrid working and disabled workers’ support needs when working remotely. We will utilise these findings to produce Good Practice Guidance for employers on the design of inclusive hybrid working and management of remote/hybrid teams that are inclusive to the needs of disabled workers within their organisations. We will also identify unmet resources or information that employers need when planning and managing hybrid working, and develop recommendations to government on improving support for disabled workers, including through the Department of Work and Pension’s Access to Work service for reasonable adjustments.
This is time-critical research: employers are making decisions now about future ways of working that will affect the long-term working conditions, health and well being of disabled workers, and this research will make an important contribution into ensuring that such decisions are taken in an inclusive and fair-minded way that take the needs of all employees of an organisation into account.
Structure of project
This mixed-methods study will build on the project team’s previous research on disabled workers’ experiences of remote and hybrid working. The project aims to shape change in government and organisational policy to make remote and hybrid working more inclusive, and to promote disabled workers’ recruitment, job retention and progression.
Methods:
The research will include:
- A UK-wide survey of disabled employees about their experiences of remote or hybrid working and follow-up interviews with a sample of survey respondents.
- Interviews with employers and organisational case studies about the challenges involved in implementing remote or hybrid working in the context of workforce diversity.
- Online focus groups with policymakers from the Department for Work and Pensions, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, The Government Equalities Office, and the devolved administrations.
The study will draw on Job Demands-Resources theory. ‘Job demands’ require physical or mental effort and can negatively affect health and well-being. ‘Job resources’ support the achievement of work goals and reduce pressures. Job demands related to remote working might include feeling isolated from colleagues, not having an appropriate workspace, or not having the right equipment. Job resources might include being able to choose where you work. The project will test whether this theory can suitably explain and understand disabled workers’ experiences of remote and hybrid working through an intersectional lens.
