Disability vs "Occupational Requirements"

[Raquelraquel]

I've seen a job advertised that I could do very easily and well. But in the Occupational Requirements, alongside operate a computer and sit for extended period of time, it states "Work in an open office environment with moderate noise"

I have a hearing impairment and this kind of environment, from past experience, gives me an awful headache. My audiologist describes it as spending the day squinting with my ears to figure out which noise is coming from where.

Is it even worth applying? Am I going to seem like a troublemaker from the start if I say oh by the way I can't work in your office for more than a few hours at a time? That's more than a reasonable adjustment isn't it?

If that’s a requirement of the job I think it’s going to be tricky. You could ask whether there’s any flex on location but it’s unlikely as they have taken the trouble of specifying it

Yes if that’s the type of office they have in it sure how amenable they’d be to you not working there as they obviously want/need staff in. You could apply and then see if there’s any adjustments they could make such as a quieter corner of the office?

Is it the kind of role where you could wear headphones to block out noise for some or all of the time? And would that help? If so, that could be considered a reasonable adjustment.

Yep you're all confirming what I thought. I know if I phone HR they will tell me to apply, reasonable adjustments can be made etc etc but if the rest of the team is in an open plan office, I'm either going to be a non-team player or have headaches.

Unless you have missed something critical out of your post, I cannot see how an open plan office meets the definition of an occupational requirement.

But I wouldn't want to work for an employer trying it on like that at recruitment stage.

"The requirement must be crucial to the post, and not merely one of several important factors. It also must not be a sham or pretext. In addition, applying the requirement must be proportionate so as to achieve a legitimate aim."

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/notes/division/3/16/26/1?view=plain#:~:text=This%20paragraph%20makes%20it%20lawful,to%20training%20for%20such%20work.

Thank you, that's interesting and a good point.

The document says :
*
Occupational Requirements for* XXXX
Please see a list of physical activities this job entails.
• Regular, predictable office attendance
• Work in an open office environment with moderate noise
• Agile working, in multiple locations and remote working
• Operate a computer and telephone keyboard
• Sitting at a computer terminal for an extended period of time
• Specific vision - close vision requirements due to computer work
Please be assured that if you require any reasonable adjustments in order to be successfully appointed to this role, you will be able to let us know what you need if and when you are offered the position.

Actually reading that, does it sound like they don't want anyone with any physical issues, hearing issues or sight issues? Or am I over thinking it!

Can you have a corner spot with your back to a wall? I would stream the radio via my Roger kit and would switch to listening mode if approached. I’d also just turn my hearing aids off sometimes. It’s exhausting trying to listen all day so I wouldn’t unless I had to.

What's the job for? That would help guide if the requirements are fabricated or not?

Ours would require that sort of working, because we work in an open plan hybrid office and face to face team workings and meetings are required due to the nature of some of the work, so it would be unavoidable. But some other jobs it may just be a preference!

It should be quite easy for the employer to make reasonable adjustments to enable people to meet those 'occupational requirements' eg allowing the wearing of noise cancelling headphones to work in a noisy office, having something installed on the PC to make text bigger if an employee sight impaired etc.

And employers are legally required to make reasonable adjustments if the equality act applies in your case.....

Caveat that you haven't said what the job is, but I'd read that as an organisation that doesn't actually want to make reasonable adjustments for anybody and is trying to misuse legal terms to avoid doing so.

I'd have said that stating such requirements in the person spec is so exceptional that there must be more to it. It's transparently saying don't apply if you have a disability, and I can't see how that "reasonable adjustments" line would get them out of a claim of discrimination. So if there isn't more to it...

I don't actually think it's legal for them to put that in the requirements for the post. Sounds dodgy.

It reads like they have had a disabled employee who requested homeworking in the past and and are illegally trying to avoid that - not a sign of a great employer.

Thank you all - no I think it's putting me off. Thank you for thinking it through with me