Miss-Delectable
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ACC Bill Potentially Discriminates Against Deaf People | Voxy.co.nz
Proposed changes to accident compensation requiring an increased threshold for hearing loss could potentially discriminate against hundreds of deaf New Zealanders, according to the New Zealand Human Rights Commission.
The Commission today urged the Transport and Industrial Relations Committee to remove the requirement that a claimant with a hearing loss must sustain a loss of six per cent before becoming entitled to remedial support.
The Select Committee was hearing submissions on the Injury Prevention, Rehabilitation and Compensation Amendment Bill.
The Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination on the grounds of disability. The proposed bill introduces a high six per cent threshold for cover, which could deny compensation to approximately 3000 people suffering from hearing loss. There does not appear to be a percentage measure for cover for any other form of personal injury. The Commission believes the move will amount to a prima facie breach of the Human Rights Act.
The Commission has significant concerns about other proposed changes and these include:
Reductions in compensation for loss of potential earnings to 80 per cent of the minimum wage in situations where young people under 18 have been incapacitated before they have been able to work or while they are in full time study that commenced before they turned 18 and continued until they were injured. It appears that under the bill, these young people are condemned to live on 80 per cent of the minimum wage for the entire time they are in receipt of the benefit, simply because they were injured before they reached a particular age. This appears to be discriminatory.
The reduction in compensation for seasonal and part-time workers (non-permanent workers) will penalise a vulnerable group in society who are less likely to have savings to fall back on in the event of injury and rehabilitation.
Human rights lie at the very heart of universal compensation. The Commission is concerned that proposed changes will breach New Zealand's commitment to international minimum standards for injured workers outlined in ILO Conventions.
The rushed process has impacted on the time frame for considering the implications of proposed changes and for more extensive consultations. The Committee believes the bill should be deferred until the steering group chaired by David Caygill reports next year.
Proposed changes to accident compensation requiring an increased threshold for hearing loss could potentially discriminate against hundreds of deaf New Zealanders, according to the New Zealand Human Rights Commission.
The Commission today urged the Transport and Industrial Relations Committee to remove the requirement that a claimant with a hearing loss must sustain a loss of six per cent before becoming entitled to remedial support.
The Select Committee was hearing submissions on the Injury Prevention, Rehabilitation and Compensation Amendment Bill.
The Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination on the grounds of disability. The proposed bill introduces a high six per cent threshold for cover, which could deny compensation to approximately 3000 people suffering from hearing loss. There does not appear to be a percentage measure for cover for any other form of personal injury. The Commission believes the move will amount to a prima facie breach of the Human Rights Act.
The Commission has significant concerns about other proposed changes and these include:
Reductions in compensation for loss of potential earnings to 80 per cent of the minimum wage in situations where young people under 18 have been incapacitated before they have been able to work or while they are in full time study that commenced before they turned 18 and continued until they were injured. It appears that under the bill, these young people are condemned to live on 80 per cent of the minimum wage for the entire time they are in receipt of the benefit, simply because they were injured before they reached a particular age. This appears to be discriminatory.
The reduction in compensation for seasonal and part-time workers (non-permanent workers) will penalise a vulnerable group in society who are less likely to have savings to fall back on in the event of injury and rehabilitation.
Human rights lie at the very heart of universal compensation. The Commission is concerned that proposed changes will breach New Zealand's commitment to international minimum standards for injured workers outlined in ILO Conventions.
The rushed process has impacted on the time frame for considering the implications of proposed changes and for more extensive consultations. The Committee believes the bill should be deferred until the steering group chaired by David Caygill reports next year.