Mental health problems will affect one person in four: a statistic repeatedly quoted these days. There are other numbers. People disabled by mental ill health have only a 20% employment rate in contrast to an overall disability employment rate of just under 50%: evidence of the prejudice and stigma associated with mental health and an…
The Chancellor of the Exchequer wants the UK to achieve full employment by creating more than two million new jobs by 2020. The Resolution Foundation, in its welcome new report, “The road to full employment: what the journey looks like and how to make progress”, sets out how to achieve this by bringing people counted…
The report of the parliamentary Women and Equalities Committee inquiry into trans equality has now been published and its conclusions that trans people face serious prejudice and discrimination have attracted wide publicity. Trade unions views were among the more than 200 submissions to the inquiry. The committee gave much weight to the evidence of trans…
The TUC has launched its Manifesto for Disability Equality, which is not a wish list, but a call for action. It is necessary because the government has been getting away for far too long with policies that do the opposite of what ministers claim. They have escaped being called to account because they have succeeded…
To mark international day of disabled people on 3 December, the TUC has published guidance for trade union representatives and disabled workers under the title “You don’t look disabled”. The individual case studies it presents show why it is needed. Much of the population assumes that disabled people use wheelchairs to get around, or carry white sticks.…
Are LGB and T people more likely to be bullied? The evidence is clear but seems to contradict studies of changing social attitudes. The figures for bullying on grounds of sexuality or gender identity are grim and they always have been. For decades the routine bullying and harassment faced by workers who are lesbian, gay…
Is Britain fairer for disabled people? No, if you read across all the findings in the report of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) published on 30 October, their five-yearly survey into “fairness” in Britain. This will come as no surprise to millions of disabled people living with the consequences. If you believe the…
Today (2 November 2015) a letter signed by hundreds of prominent people including Frances O’Grady, General Secretary of the TUC and politicians from all major parties, calls for the autumn statement to ensure that mental health is treated on a par with physical health (requiring much greater investment). Ten areas of concern are set out.…
The Office for National Statistics has published the Integrated Household Survey with the findings for 2014 for sexual identity and (bizarrely), smoking. The headline figure suggested that there had been little change in the overall number of people identifying as lesbian, gay or bisexual since the first survey in 2010. Around 93% identify as heterosexual,…
The new Women and Equalities Select Committee – a cross-party group of Members of Parliament – decided that its first action would be to hold an inquiry into the position of transgender people in the UK. The initial consultation period has just closed and the TUC made a submission (which you can read here). Legal…