Reasonable Accommodation Fund

The department has responsibility for providing labour market services for people with a disability, assisting them with finding paid employment or preparing them for employment through a training or employment programme.

Under the Reasonable Accommodation Fund, the department can help employers and employees with a disability to take appropriate measures to help a person with a disability to access, improve or retain their employment by providing the following grants:

• the Workplace Equipment Adaptation Grant (WEAG)
• the Job Interview Interpreter Grant (JIIG)
• the Personal Reader Grant (PRG)
• the Employee Retention Grant (ERG)

Also available is the Disability Awareness Support Scheme (DASS) which offers funding to private sector employers to provide Disability Awareness Training for staff who work with a colleague who has a disability.

• if you need a more accessible workplace or adapted equipment to do your job, you or your employer may be able to get a grant towards the costs of making these changes under the WEAG scheme
• if you are a jobseeker who is deaf, hard of hearing or has a speech impairment and you are attending job interviews with private sector employers, you may apply for funding to have a sign language interpreter or other interpreter attend the interviews with you under the JIIG scheme
• if you are blind or visually impaired and you need assistance with job-related reading, you may be entitled to a grant to allow you to employ a Personal Reader under the PRG scheme
• funding is available to support the retention of an existing employee at any level and occupation within the company, who acquires an illness, condition or impairment which impacts on their current ability to do their job under the ERG scheme

You can find out more information by contacting your local Intreo Centre or the Designated Disability Case Officer in your area.