May 19th is World IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease) Day and this year I’m thinking about accessibility in the workplace.

I have IBD and two years ago I had to quit my job partly because my workplace could not support remote work meetings. The ironies of the current remote-working culture in the pandemic are not lost on me. Like many other disabled people I felt pain at how quickly the world implemented remote working as the pandemic started to pick up speed. I have mixed feelings about the whole thing. Obviously, I’m pleased that zoom took off and so many people were able to work from home. But, I also wanted to smash crockery at how unfair the whole thing felt. It hurt to see abled people given the accommodations I had been denied.

The pandemic has highlighted that accommodations in the workplace are possible. Some charities are imploring employers to take these lessons into future consideration. Now that we’ve seen a glimpse of what can be possible, there is an opportunity to explore it further, so that no one is excluded.

Not every disability is visible

Crohns and Colitis UK have been running the “Not every disability is visible” campaign since 2016. It’s primarily concerned with enabling accessible toilet access for people with invisible disabilities. It encourages public-facing companies to add “Not every disability is visible” signs to their toilets. Over 3,000 places across the UK have installed these signs so far, including supermarkets, train stations and restaurants.

Image attribution: Jenny AdlemImage description: Large toilet sign that has an outline of a person in a wheelchair with the words “Accessible” and “Not every disability is visible” on it.

They’ve now expanded the campaign to ask UK businesses to pledge to make their workplaces more inclusive for people living with invisible conditions. Companies can sign up to either silver or gold pledges, with different levels of implementations in each. These implementations include everything from appointing an invisible condition rep to liaise with staff and training staff, to making remote work an option to employees.

Crohns and Colitis UK are offering to support employers with this move to accessible workplaces, and full information can be found on their website. I recommend bringing this to the attention of your employer, even if you yourself don’t have an invisible condition. It will benefit everyone.

What is IBD?

World IBD Day is designed to raise awareness of Inflammatory Bowel Disease. IBD is an umbrella term for a group of inflammatory diseases that affect the digestive system. Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are the two most common forms of the disease. They are chronic conditions, with no cure. It’s estimated that more than 300,000 people in the UK have IBD.

The main symptoms are:

Diarrhoea - both with and without blood
Cramping in the abdomen
Fatigue
Weight loss
Anaemia
Mouth ulcers

These are also the symptoms of many other diseases and if you have any of them it’s important to see your doctor.

Accessible workplaces in the future

Campaigns like “Not every disability is visible” are spreading awareness of invisible conditions that so many people live with. Now that we have concrete evidence of the success of remote working there is a real demand for companies in the future to change the way they structure their workplaces. There are benefits for both the employee and the employer in making workplaces accessible. The Work Foundation found that:

Companies that recognise the needs of people with invisible conditions can improve the productivity, reduce staff turnover and drive better employee wellbeing and satisfaction.

An employer’s willingness to be flexible with their employees and acknowledge their individual needs will benefit everyone. I’m optimistic that in the future workplaces will be more accessible and that new methods of working will be possible.