To coincide with Disability History Month (14th November – 20th December), the Law Society of England and Wales has published guidance on disability terminology and language to support employers and employees in the workplace.
There are a significant number of words, phrases and acronyms that appear when talking about disability, which often change depending on the context of the conversation.
The guidance shows it is important to understand the meaning behind the terms we use to address people and to keep updated and willing to refresh our language so we use appropriate and respectful terms.
For example, the guidance advises to steer clear of terms that imply pity such as ‘suffering from’ or ‘victim of’. In addition, it is more appropriate to use language such as ‘support’ rather than ‘help’ when referring to disabled people.
UK government statistics show there were 5.1 million disabled people in employment in the UK in Q2 2023, an increase of 2.2 million since the same quarter in 2013.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) data shows there has been an increase in the proportion of disabled lawyers, from 3% in 2015 to 6% in 2023. There is still significant underrepresentation compared to 16% in the UK workforce. Law Society president Richard Atkinson said:
“People and organisations can be so fearful of saying the wrong thing that they say nothing and do not address the barriers to improve disability inclusion.
This is why we’ve created our guide to disability terminology and language to ensure the profession is using the right words, phrases and acronyms when talking about disability.
The guidance advises people to remember that individuals will have their own preferences as to how they would describe themselves, and how they would wish to be described. Identity is extremely personal.
We urge the profession to listen, educate themselves, learn and politely ask about preferences if they’re in doubt.”
