Last reviewed: 22 June 2022
- Employers have a legal duty under the UK’s Equality Act 2010 to make ‘reasonable’ adjustments for disabled applicants and candidates.
- There is no set list of adjustments that are reasonable – you must consider a number of factors that are unique to the individual, their disability, your organisation and the role they are applying for.
- Colleagues working in recruitment roles should receive advice – such as from HR and Occupational Health – when deciding what adjustments they can make.
- Don’t just focus on what is ‘reasonable’ – this is the legal minimum. Focus instead on proactively supporting disabled applicants and candidates, even if it is not a legal requirement.
What does ‘reasonable’ mean?
Under the UK’s Equality Act 2010, employers are required to make ‘reasonable’ adjustments for disabled people, including during recruitment. If an adjustment is ‘reasonable’, an employer can face legal liability for not making it or offering to make it.
Where an applicant or candidate is disabled, employers have a legal duty to ask them what adjustments they need and explore with them what will work in their situation. If an adjustment is ‘reasonable’, it is a legal requirement to make it or offer to make it for the applicant or candidate.
What adjustments are ‘reasonable’?
There is no set list of adjustments that are ‘reasonable’. What is reasonable depends on:
- the individual and their disability
- the organisation
- the role they are applying for
- the employer’s recruitment policies and practices.
An adjustment that is reasonable for one individual applying for one role may not be reasonable for another individual with the same disability for the same role, or for a different role.
Factors to help determine what is ‘reasonable’
Employers need to weigh up the answers to the following questions when deciding whether an adjustment is reasonable:
- How much will the adjustment cost? If an adjustment is too costly, it may not be reasonable. It is important to remember that most adjustments cost very little – research has found that over half (57 per cent) of adjustments cost nothing at all. When deciding, consider the resources of the whole organisation and the cost of not making the adjustment. The more money the organisation has, the more likely the adjustment is to be reasonable. Courts can be reluctant to find an adjustment unreasonable on the basis of cost alone, so bear in mind that an adjustment may have to be quite costly to be unreasonable on that basis alone. Check too if there help with the cost of the adjustment is available – for example, from the Government’s Access to Work scheme.
- How practicable is the adjustment? How easy will the adjustment be to implement? If the adjustment would create serious operational problems then it might not be practicable or reasonable.
- How effective is the adjustment? An adjustment will only be reasonable if it effectively reduces or removes the barrier that the disabled applicant or candidate faces. Work with the disabled person and other expert teams – such as HR and Occupational Health – to work out what adjustments will be effective.
- Will the adjustment cause any disruption? Most adjustments cause no disruption as they only affect the individual. However, in recruitment, consider if it will disrupt your ability to carry out the recruitment process, for example if it will take too long to implement and the position is time sensitive.
- Will the adjustment pose any health and safety risks? Very few adjustments are genuine health and safety risks, however you have a duty to consider this. Health and safety considerations override the Equality Act, so if an adjustment will pose a genuine health and safety risk, it will not be reasonable. If you are worried about health and safety, you need to conduct a thorough risk assessment before declining to make it.
- Are there any external sources of help? Employers can get help making adjustments that can make them more reasonable. For example, Access to Work can provide money to provide communication support at interviews and assessments, such as interpreters. You should also use the expertise of other teams, including HR, Occupational Health and senior managers.
See our resource ‘What is ‘reasonable’?’ for more information.
How to decide what is ‘reasonable’
Hiring managers should work with their managers, the team the new starter will join, HR colleagues and Occupational Health where necessary to help decide whether an adjustment is reasonable. Use the above questions as a guide to deciding whether an adjustment is reasonable. Weigh up the answers together.
Speed is always important with decisions about adjustments, but can be especially crucial during recruitment. Delays deciding about adjustments and implementing them can cause delays to the whole recruitment process and to inducting the new starter.
Our ‘Reasonable adjustments decision process and form’ has more information and a template you can fill in to help your decision making.
For advice about a specific situation, contact our Advice Service.
Beyond ‘reasonable’ – Workplace adjustment policies in recruitment and onboarding
While it is important to know what is ‘reasonable’ – because this is a legal requirement – this should not be your only guide. ‘Reasonable’ adjustments are the legal minimum, and therefore focusing too much on this can mean you lose focus on positive inclusion.
Take a positive approach to making adjustments instead of only making adjustments that you are legally required to make. Remember the reasons you are seeking to hire more disabled people and create more inclusive recruitment practices.
Look at the costs and benefits of inclusion holistically – while one adjustment may seem to be too expensive in isolation, having a more diverse workforce and hiring the best talent for the role is likely to return benefits that outweigh the costs of any one adjustment.
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