The Albanese Labor Government's response to the Disability Royal Commission does not go far enough to make meaningful change for people with disability, according to the Community and Public Sector Union's Accessibility Network.
The Royal Commission laid out 172 recommendations for the government to consider. Disappointingly, the government has only accepted 13 of those recommendations in full. 117 recommendations have been accepted in principle, 36 will be further considered, and 6 have been noted.
The CPSU's Accessibility Network is a member-led network of workers with disability or experience of disability and covers all areas of CPSU coverage including the Australian Public Service (APS), ACT and NT Governments, CSIRO, the ABC and more.
The federal government and the APS must play a key role in transforming our nation's approach to accessibility and improving the lives of citizens with disability, their families and communities.
The APS has unfortunately not always been a model employer for people with disability. The CPSU Accessibility Network was established to address these issues including recruitment and retention of staff with disability, provision of assistive technology, and employment conditions that support workers with disability.
The CPSU Accessibility Network is committed to pursuing the full suite of Royal Commission recommendations and ensuring the public service is a leader, both as in its role as an employer and in the design and delivery of change.
The network will further consider the government's response in coming days as more analysis is done, but individual reactions have so far labelled the response as disappointing, underwhelming and jarring.
Quotes attributable to Beth Vincent-Pietsch, CPSU Deputy National President:
"This response will be deeply disappointing for the almost 10,000 people with disability, their families, friends, and advocates, who contributed to this Royal Commission.
"They participated in public hearings, made submissions and told their stories with the expectation that their voices would be heard and acted upon.
"The CPSU contributed a detailed submission to the Royal Commission, informed by the feedback of our members and their experiences.
"This submission spoke to the need for the APS to be a more diverse workplace and a model employer of people with disability.
"In doing so, the APS will be better able to design and deliver policies and services that meet the needs of people with disability.
"People with disability right across Australia need this government to lead from the front, as an employer and as a decision maker, and we urge them to do so.
