A FIFTH of people with disabilities are being forced to go into the workplace or quit their jobs to stay safe, new research published today suggests. 

Charity Scope said it was a “sad indictment” of attitudes in Britain towards disabled people that many are being “left with no other option but to quit their job so they can stay safe, or take their chances with a deadly virus.”

According to its survey of 1,000 disabled adults, around a fifth had been refused a request to work from home, while one in 10 reported that their bosses had rejected calls to be put on furlough. 

One in five said they were given no other option but to continue going to their workplaces or quit.

Scope executive director James Taylor has called for disabled people’s right to access the furlough scheme to be strengthened, highlighting that existing equality legislation was not working.

“Furlough is a vital safety net for disabled people who don’t feel safe in the workplace but whose jobs cannot be done from home,” he said.

“If it’s left down to employer discretion, there’s no guarantee disabled people who don’t feel safe will be able to get this protection.”

Protection for people with disabilities is particularly urgent as two-thirds of all those who have died from coronavirus have been disabled. 

Disabled Peoples Against Cuts founder Linda Burnip told the Morning Star that the findings were a “disgrace,” but “hardly unexpected from a government that doesn’t even provide support for disabled MPs to vote remotely.

“More definitely needs to be done to ensure disabled people, who have been shown to disproportionately die from this virus, are able to remain safe.”

A Treasury spokesman said employers must ensure the safety of people with disabilities but that it is up to them to decide whether to furlough workers.