The UK government has today published the Buckland Review of Autism Employment, the most detailed look yet at why so few autistic people are in work and what employers can do about it. Led by Sir Robert Buckland KC for the Department for Work and Pensions, with support from the research charity Autistica, it makes 19 recommendations and aims to significantly improve the autism employment rate over the next five years.
The starting point is stark. Only around three in ten autistic adults in the UK are in employment, one of the lowest rates of any group of disabled people. The review argues that this is not because autistic people can’t or don’t want to work. It is largely because of how employers recruit, manage and design their workplaces, and because too few people know about the support that already exists.
What the review recommends
Many of the recommendations are aimed squarely at employers. The review proposes an employers’ neurodiversity index, so that organisations can measure and compare how inclusive they are, and calls for training packages to help managers and colleagues understand autism. It recommends autism design guides for premises and equipment, recognising that lighting, noise and layout can make a workplace accessible or exhausting.
It also calls for fairer recruitment, including adjustments to interviews and assessments; a national campaign to raise awareness among employers; and better promotion of supported internships as a route into work for young autistic people. And it urges government and charities to make sure autistic people know about Access to Work, the UK scheme that can help pay for support and adjustments. A taskforce is proposed to oversee the plan, and an independent taskforce has since been set up to monitor progress.
Why maritime should pay attention
The review is about the UK workforce as a whole, but much of it reads as if it were written for shipping.
Recruitment is the clearest example. Maritime employers often rely on psychometric tests, competency interviews and assessment centres that reward a particular way of presenting yourself. Seafarers tell us that these filter out capable autistic candidates long before anyone sees what they can do on board. The review’s call for fairer, adjusted recruitment processes is directly relevant to cadet schemes and crewing agencies alike.
The working environment matters too. Ships are noisy, bright and unpredictable, and crews live as well as work together for weeks or months. The kind of adjustments the review describes, such as quieter spaces, clear written instructions, predictable routines and managers who understand autism, are often simple and cheap to provide on board, and they tend to help everyone, not only autistic crew.
The review also gives employers something the industry has lacked: a recognised, government-backed framework to point to. Companies that want to do better no longer have to start from scratch.
Where to start
Although the review is about the UK, its recommendations are good practice for maritime employers anywhere. Our guides set out how to put them into practice at sea: neuroinclusive recruitment, reasonable adjustments for employers and managing neurodivergent staff. If your organisation would like help, we offer neurodiversity training for crews and shore staff.
Sources: The Buckland Review of Autism Employment (GOV.UK, PDF) · National Autistic Society
