How record-breaking revenue doesn’t seem to stretch to fundamental inclusion
By Daniel Morgan-Williams, Founding Director of Visualise Training and Consultancy
Introduction
“We made £10.4 billion in profit last year!”
Great. So why is a £300 screen reader still “under review”? Why has a workplace adjustment for an employee with sight loss been delayed for four months because of “budget approval”? Why is the only captioning tool your staff have access to still called “lip reading”?
For disabled employees — particularly those with visual impairments or hearing loss — this isn’t hypothetical. It’s reality.
Every day, organisations that proudly publish record profits are simultaneously delaying or denying reasonable adjustments that cost a fraction of a marketing campaign. And let’s be clear: this isn’t a funding issue. It’s a priority issue.
The Illusion of Expense
Reasonable adjustments are framed as expensive, time-consuming or complex — but in practice, most are anything but.
Let’s break down the reality:
– A screen magnifier: £250
– Captioning software: often free
– A visual alert for fire alarms: under £100
– A workplace assessment that maps out all of this? Usually under £500
Many of these are fully or partially funded through the Government’s Access to Work scheme, meaning the cost to the employer is either minimal or zero.
So when organisations say, “We’d love to support this, but the budget just isn’t there right now”, what they really mean is:
“We don’t consider your inclusion important enough to prioritise.”
The Cost of Doing Nothing
Let’s flip the question. If reasonable adjustments cost money, what does not making them cost?
➤ Staff turnover
Disabled employees leave when they feel unsupported. The cost of replacing one staff member can reach £30,000 or more, once you factor in recruitment, onboarding, and lost productivity.
➤ Lost productivity
If someone with hearing loss misses critical instructions in a meeting because captions weren’t available, how much time — and money — is wasted redoing that work?
➤ Legal action
Tribunals for failure to make reasonable adjustments are not only costly — they’re reputationally damaging. Some organisations have paid six-figure settlements that could have been avoided with a £1,000 investment in accessibility.
➤ Reputational risk
Performative DEI is easily exposed. Contradictions between glowing ESG reports and inaccessible internal systems are no longer tolerated.
But We’ve Got a DEI Policy!
Many organisations proudly point to their diversity and inclusion policies. Some even host Disability Awareness Days. But here’s the truth:
A DEI policy is meaningless if your internal systems exclude staff with disabilities.
Here’s what “inclusion” looks like to someone with a visual impairment:
– A colleague who emails PDFs that aren’t screen reader accessible
– A training course full of unlabelled diagrams
– A printer set up with no speech feedback and no tactile buttons
And for someone with hearing loss:
– A fire alarm system with no visual alert
– A video meeting where no one turns on captions
– Colleagues who say, “never mind, I’ll tell you later,” instead of repeating themselves
These are not isolated incidents. They are everyday barriers.
Proactive Inclusion vs Reactive Apologies
The best organisations don’t wait until a tribunal, a resignation, or a social media scandal to act.
They invest before someone complains. They embed accessibility into their:
– Recruitment platforms
– Internal communication tools
– Office layouts and lighting
– IT systems
– Staff training
They don’t wait for someone to disclose a disability before acting — because most disabilities are hidden, and many employees don’t feel safe enough to reveal.
The Elephant in the Room: Disability Is Still Last on the DEI Agenda
Companies talk about race, gender, and LGBTQ+ inclusion — but disability remains the forgotten child of workplace equity.
Why?
– Because it’s uncomfortable
– Because it challenges “business as usual”
– Because it requires actual structural change
Yet 1 in 5 people in the UK live with a disability. If your DEI strategy doesn’t centre disability inclusion, it’s not a DEI strategy. It’s a branding exercise.
What Inclusion Actually Looks Like
Let’s take a moment to imagine what real inclusion could look like for staff with sensory impairments:
For someone with sight loss:
– Documents and systems that are screen-reader compatible
– Verbal descriptions in meetings
– Tactile signage and adjustable lighting
– Access to assistive tech
For someone with hearing loss:
– Captioning in meetings
– Loop systems
– Written follow-ups
– Visual alerts
– Deaf awareness training
Most are simple to implement. Many are low or no-cost. All of them improve clarity, usability, and communication for everyone.
How to Stop Using Budget as an Excuse
- Start tracking the real cost of inaction
2. Use Access to Work
3. Stop delaying the small stuff
4. Invest in workplace assessments
5. Make inclusion part of your budget forecast
Profits and Inclusion Are Not in Competition
You do not have to choose between being profitable and being inclusive. In fact, they go hand in hand.
Companies that invest in inclusive practices:
– Retain more staff
– Experience higher morale
– Are more innovative
– Build stronger reputations
Inclusion is not a cost. It’s a competitive advantage.
Final Thoughts: Your Staff Notice. So Do Your Customers.
If your organisation is announcing “record profits” and simultaneously failing to provide reasonable adjustments, don’t be surprised when:
– Disabled employees stop believing your messaging
– Top disabled talent doesn’t apply
– The tribunal costs more than the adjustment ever would have
Take Action
Enough with the excuses.
If you’re serious about building an inclusive, high-performing workplace — start by removing the barriers you’ve chosen to ignore.
Visualise Training and Consultancy offers tailored workplace assessments that identify cost-effective adjustments for staff with visual impairments, hearing loss, and related conditions.
Let’s stop pretending inclusion is unaffordable — and start treating it as essential.
To find out more and make a referral, visit https://visualisetrainingandconsultancy.com/workplace-assessments