Is it okay to query job rejection under disability scheme

Disability Confident isn’t a public sector scheme, though. I’m surprised someone’s chosen to set up their own scheme rather than just use that one, but if it works for your organisation that’s the main thing!

There's a scheme specifically for asd.

The disability scheme is specifically for people out of work or people who need support or changes to access work. Completely different scheme & sector & I know nothing about the public sector scheme - I just thought it was worth checking eligibility but yes if it is for anyone with any disability then absolutely everything should be included eg dyslexia, asd, mental health, long term illness etc.

The disability confident scheme kicks in if you meet the minimum passmark but aren't in the top scorers they would otherwise select for interview

So in civil service passmark is 4
If there are tonnes of good applications I might raise the pass mark to 6 for interview in order to only interview a realistic number of people
But I also have to interview anyone who applies under disability confident and scored 4 or above

Crucially It's the employer who decides whether you meet the minimum criteria, not you. I suspect that's where you're falling down.

I think you should question it. Possibly it’s been missed, possibly numbers were high, possibly you didn’t represent yourself in such a way that it was obvious you met the minimum. Whichever of those apply, it would be useful info for you.

But I also think you need to move away from the assumption that you’d be a great fit because it’s so similar to your current employer. It’s not unknown for managers to think applicants from closely related organisations are too close. Just concentrate on your transferable skills and experience.

What exactly did the application require OP?

Was it just a CV/work history or did it also require a personal statement and/or competency based questions?

If it is the latter, and that is part of the scoring matrix at the essential criteria level, it may be where you are dipping below the interview bar.

However if it is just a CV/work history as the initial application then either they’ve messed up or they could be viewing your CV as not demonstrating the essential criteria. (Have you had someone check over your CV to make sure you’re not hiding your light under a bush? - I’m terrible for this!)

One other element to check is any nationality or clearance requirements - some jobs need you to have X numbers of years residency, again this is essential criteria (although often at the bottom of the advert and not in the essential criteria list) and if you don’t meet it you may be being excluded on that basis.

The above are just some thoughts and I’m not trying to blame you for getting rejected in anyway OP. It’s utterly frustrating and i definitely think it is worth sending an email asking for some clarity around their application of scheme and asking for your application to be reviewed if you feel comfortable asking for that.

Good luck!

And dyslexia. Which is far more that struggling to read.

Do you actually meet the criteria for the scheme with asd?

Yes, it is generally considered a disability under the Equality Act.

Interesting that your scheme doesn’t. Wonder how they legally get around that.

Read my post about the 100+ eligible DC candidates on one of our recent roles.

as it happens, I could tick the DC box myself and am not eligible for benefits either.

fact is few companies could afford to interview 200 candidates, so while the intention is good, the practivalities don’t work.

I’ve spent 20+ years in HR trying to improve things for people with disabilities.

Do you actually meet the criteria for the scheme with asd?

I'm in completely different sector (not public sector) which is very open to employing people with neurodiversity & people with asd are actually over represented in the company. Theres a similar disability confident scheme but it does not include applicants where the only disability is asd. (Also dyslexia)

I don’t think they have had an interview though, seems they aren’t keeping to the disability confident scheme - similar happened to my sister and it was a government department that rejected her after she ticked the disability box and met the minimum criteria

Ah, I see - I missed that bit. But perhaps it would be better to not have an interview for a job you probably wouldn't have been offered anyway. If they'd been interested in your CV, they would have called you for an interview.

I do think feedback would be good though ie "thank you for applying. we've decided not to waste your time by calling you for interview as we don't feel you have as much experience in xxx as some of the other candidates"

You can give whatever example you like. The advert I applied for under the Disability Confident Scheme guaranteed an interview to any disabled candidate who met the minimum criteria. I exceeded that criteria by a considerable margin and was not offered an interview. The OP has had a similar experience. What you believe to be practical is irrelevant.

What is interesting is why you think it is acceptable for employers to waste our time and raise expectations with false promises? Why you're making excuses for this? Is our time worth less, or is it that you don't believe what your being told because it hasn't happened to you?

Would you prefer disabled people to claim benefits? I'm at the stage where I'm not bothered either way. No-one wants to employ me despite being highly qualified and having considerable experience and I don't qualify for benefits. What sort of society are you advocating?

It’s not though. Because that is not practical a lot of the time. See the example I gave above.

THEY CAN, that is Exactly what the Disability confident scheme is - a guaranteed interview if you meet the minimum essential criteria.

Why on earth are people relying without reading and understating the OP's post. It's embarrassing.

I mean you can expect that when that is literally what they’re saying they do.

OP definitely ask. A lot of the initial sift is often done by HR temps who have no clue.

But also, the wording you pasted says nothing about a guaranteed interview for applications that do meet the criteria. It says those that best meet it.

Sometimes it's an admin error but also sometimes they've already got someone in mind. In the latter case you could get offered an interview but you won't be getting the job. Do you want to waste your time?

If you've applied 3 times and haven't got in you might need to consider networking etc.

@DCapplicant they probably had applicants with better experience than you. no one can expect an interview just because they fit the criteria and can do the job!

I think people here are giving you a bit of a hard time tbh. Unless the applicant numbers were stratospheric, I think based on their own criteria you should have been taken through to the next round. I would definitely query it, or ask for feedback given that you applied under the DC scheme. They shouldn't shout about how inclusive they are if they aren't actually going to respect the guidelines.

Also it’s interesting to hear that this department used CVs still. We have competency based applications which you can use the STAR based examples. Makes it easier to score objectively.

Can I ask why you would respond without knowing anything about the scheme the OP is referring to?

Unless I've misunderstood the post, the OP was rejected at the first round ie did not receive an interview despite being guaranteed one under the scheme, providing she met the minimum criteria.

OP, I've had exactly the same experience with a public sector body, which leads me to believe the whole thing is absolute bullshit - the disabled equivalent of greenwashing. Nice PR for the organisation, lovely logo etc and absolutely fuck all benefit for the disabled applicant. If anything, it's harmful - all these schemes to help and I still can get a job, it really must be me. I've spent decades being an eternal optimist but for me, the Disability Confident scheme has exposed these initiatives for what they are.

Oh sorry, I misread, thought you'd had an interview but not progressed. In that case email them, it might have been missed. Did you definitely make the closing date?

Did she actually meet the minimum criteria as per their scoring? In the Cs, this usually means scoring 4 across all competencies, and people not using the scheme maybe needing to score higher. i have rejected quite a few people who applied using the scheme because they scored 3 or less on some of the competencies. Just saying you have done X often isn't enough.

I would query it. I occasionally recruit for my team of staff and it's down to me to tick a small box on one of several e-pages to ensure a candidate is marked under this scheme. It's the sort of thing someone could easily miss.

If you're worried about sounding 'pushy' rather than just pleasantly confident, you could ask for feedback, stating that you thought your previous experience and skills along with your disability confident status would have resulted in an interview, so please could you have some feedback so you can learn how you did not present yourself in a way to show you met to w essential criteria. That way you come across as proactive while the person reading it will be prompted to check.