Automated tests, timed online assessments, productivity targets set by software, chatbots and monitoring tools can all put a disabled person at a disadvantage that has nothing to do with whether they can do the job. In Great Britain, the Equality Act 2010 requires employers to make reasonable adjustments. This page sets out how the duty works, using the words of sections 20 and 21 and Schedule 8, and how it applies to AI tools at work.
The short answer: where a provision, criterion or practice, a physical feature, or the lack of an auxiliary aid puts a disabled person at a substantial disadvantage compared with people who are not disabled, the employer must take such steps as it is reasonable to have to take to avoid the disadvantage or provide the aid (s20(3) to (5)). Failing to do so is discrimination (s21(2)).
The three requirements
- First requirement: where a provision, criterion or practice of the employer puts a disabled person at a substantial disadvantage in relation to a relevant matter, compared with persons who are not disabled, take such steps as it is reasonable to have to take to avoid the disadvantage (s20(3)).
- Second requirement: the same for a physical feature (s20(4)). A physical feature includes fixtures, fittings, furniture, equipment and other chattels in or on premises, and any other physical element or quality (s20(10)).
- Third requirement: where a disabled person would, but for an auxiliary aid, be put at a substantial disadvantage, take such steps as it is reasonable to have to take to provide the aid (s20(5)). An auxiliary aid includes an auxiliary service (s20(11)).
Where the first or third requirement relates to providing information, reasonable steps include making sure the information is provided in an accessible format (s20(6)). The employer cannot make the disabled person pay any part of its costs of complying, unless the Act expressly says otherwise (s20(7)).
Who the employer owes the duty to
For an employer, the duty is owed (Sch 8 para 5):
- when deciding to whom to offer employment, to a person who is, or has notified the employer that they may be, an applicant;
- in relation to employment, to applicants and to employees.
Schedule 8 also sets out the duty for agencies supplying contract workers, client firms, partnerships, LLPs, barristers, office-holders, qualifications bodies, employment service-providers and trade organisations (Sch 8 Part 2).
The knowledge limit
An employer is not subject to the duty if it does not know, and could not reasonably be expected to know, that a disabled person is or may be an applicant, or that the person has a disability and is likely to be placed at the disadvantage (Sch 8 para 20). The words "could not reasonably be expected to know" matter when an automated process stands between the person and the employer, so requests and disclosures sent through a portal or chatbot should reach someone who can act on them.
Where AI tools come in
- Automated tests and interviews: a timed online test, game-based assessment or recorded video interview is a practice applied to applicants. Extra time, a different format or a person-led alternative are the kinds of steps the first requirement points to.
- Targets set by software: productivity rates, call-handling times and keystroke or activity scores are criteria applied to staff. Adjusting the target, or how it is measured, is a step under the first requirement.
- Information through tools: policies, rotas and instructions delivered through an app or chatbot are information, so the accessible format rule in section 20(6) applies.
- Assistive software: screen readers, speech-to-text and captioning can be auxiliary aids under the third requirement, and workplace tools may need to work with them.
- Monitoring: where a monitoring tool counts an agreed adjustment, such as extra breaks, as low activity, the adjustment is being undone by the tool.
How a claim works
A failure to comply with the first, second or third requirement is a failure to comply with the duty to make reasonable adjustments, and the employer discriminates against the disabled person if it fails to comply in relation to them (s21(1) and (2)). Where a tool's score leads to unfavourable treatment, see also discrimination arising from disability. For who counts as disabled, see what counts as a disability.
Practical steps
- Employers: tell applicants and staff which automated tools are used and how to ask for an adjustment, make sure requests made through a portal or chatbot reach a person, check that tools work with common assistive software, and set tool-generated targets so agreed adjustments are built in.
- Applicants and workers: ask in writing, say what the disadvantage is and what would help, and keep a copy. If a tool or target is the problem, name it.
See also AI and disabled workers and AI and the Equality Act. This page covers Great Britain and is general information on the law as at 2 November 2026, not legal advice.
Questions and answers
Does an employer have to adjust an AI recruitment test for a disabled applicant?
Where the test is a provision, criterion or practice that puts a disabled applicant at a substantial disadvantage compared with non-disabled applicants, the employer must take such steps as it is reasonable to have to take to avoid the disadvantage (Equality Act 2010, section 20(3)).
Can the employer charge for the adjustment?
No. Section 20(7) says a person subject to the duty is not entitled to require the disabled person to pay any part of its costs of complying, subject to express provision to the contrary.
What if the employer did not know about the disability?
Under Schedule 8 paragraph 20, the duty does not apply if the employer did not know, and could not reasonably be expected to know, of the disability and the likely disadvantage.
Is failing to make a reasonable adjustment discrimination?
Yes. Section 21(2) says a person discriminates against a disabled person if they fail to comply with the duty in relation to that person.