It is important for blind, deafblind and vision-impaired people to know their rights in relation to seeking, finding and retaining employment.

Employers must follow the laws laid out in the Human Rights Act 1993.

If you are equally qualified for a job an employer cannot:

• refuse or omit to employ you
• offer less favourable employment terms
• disadvantage you in terms of training, promotion or transfer
• unjustly end your contract or force you to resign or retire.

In addition, job ads or pre-interviews cannot infer discrimination.

If you would like to read more, visit the Human Rights Commission website.

And if you think that you need support with an employment rights issue, then both the Human Rights Commission and the Employment Relations Service deal with discrimination in the workplace. You can take a case to either, but not both at the same time.

The RNZFB has produced a small booklet called Seeing Justice Done. You may find this provides useful information on your legal rights. Follow the link above to read it online or download it in formatted braille, or email comms to request a copy in your preferred format.