Content area
Full Text
On behalf of the disabled people's independent living movement (ILM), Brisenden (1998: 26) argues that 'the equality we are demanding is rooted in the concept of control; it stems from our desire to be individuals who can choose for themselves'. The rhetoric of choice and control has been central to the rollout of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) in Australia, commencing in 2013. The National Disability Insurance Agency's (NDIAs) (2018[1]: 4) 'vision of the NDIS is to build a competitive and contestable marketplace that is flexible and responds to the choices and preferences of participants. ' The NDIS seeks to deliver choice and control over disability services by operating as a cash for care scheme (Yeandle & Ungerson 1997: 2), by directly paying participants to act as consumers in a state-managed market for disability services.
However, while the demand for independent living arose through a collective experience of disablement, it is unlikely to be satisfied by a scheme which atomises its participants (Thill 2015). Additionally, 'insufficient attention has been paid to the importance of workforce training and development, as a crucial precondition for high quality service delivery' (Ryan and Stanford 2018: 6). This article presents the ILM and the union movement as both in tension with the NDIS's individualised approach. It further presents how the NDIS pits these two movements against each other, but also presents opportunities for an emancipatory resolution reached through solidarity.
Context
Almost 1 in 5 (4.3 million) Australian citizens and permanent residents are disabled (ABS 2015). Of this number, around 460 000 are under 65 and have a 'permanent and significant' impairment, making them eligible for the NDIS (NDIA 2018[1]: 10). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are nearly twice as likely to be disabled as non-indigenous people (ABS 2015). Around 1 in 5 disabled people have a mental or behavioural impairment compared to 4 in 5 with a physical impairment (ABS 2015). Almost 2 in 3 disabled people require assistance with daily activities (ABS 2015). Disabled people are around 30 percent less likely to be employed than non-disabled people, and 1 in 12 disabled people reported discrimination or unfair treatment over 12 months (ABS 2015). While 37 percent of those employed are managers and professionals, 45 percent of disabled...