New Research Supports ANZ’s Continued Push To Be A More Accessible Bank

ANZ announced its new Accessibility & Inclusion Plan, marking tomorrow’s International Day of People with Disability. This new plan commits to a more inclusive design, better customer and employee experience and stronger connection with community and partners.

Extending to New Zealand for the first time, ANZ’s Accessibility & Inclusion Plan aims to embed accessibility and inclusion across all aspects of our business.

While continuing progress on inclusive technology solutions, the new plan will also embed inclusive design by actively consulting with people with disability in development, testing and implementation of banking solutions.

The plan strengthens employment opportunities and support, by implementing a disability leadership program and investing in mental health prevention strategies such as mental health first aid training.

ANZ Group Executive Technology and Executive Sponsor for Accessibility, Gerard Florian said: “ANZ’s latest Accessibility and Inclusion Plan sits within the context of the major digital transformation underway across our operations.”

“This latest set of commitments demonstrates how we are working to embed accessibility into our digital future and hybrid working model.”

Supporting the plan is new research, Financial Wellbeing: People with disability or long-term health conditions, which looks at the financial confidence and wellbeing of Australians living with disability. According to the research, reduced earning potential, employment opportunities and poor mental health, all contribute to a level of financial wellbeing below the national average for Australians with disability.

Twice as many people with disability or long-term health conditions found it more difficult to save compared to those without, 22 per cent of Australians with disability reported having no savings compared to only 11 per cent of those without, making it more difficult to deal with unexpected expenses.

ANZ Group CEO, Shayne Elliott said: “The research provides a solid example for why a strong commitment to accessibility is important, given how Australians with disability fare with their financial wellbeing.

“ANZ is committed to working alongside others to identify and address barriers, foster positive attitudes and close gaps to improve outcomes for people with disability, in our workplace, for our customers and the broader community.”

Key research findings include:

• Australians with disability or long-term health conditions had a financial wellbeing score of 54/100 vs Australians without a condition 66/100. Working age Australians (18-64s) with disability had a financial wellbeing score of 48/100.
• 57% working age Australians (18-64-year-olds) with disability or long-term health conditions reported fair/poor mental health vs 26% of working age Australians without a condition.
• One-in-six (16%) working age people with disability had a university degree vs 28% of the working age people without a condition; 38% earned <$35,000 per annum (compared to 14% of those without a condition)
• People with disability are budgeting, planning and regularly monitoring their finances. Three-quarters (76%) of people with disability or long-term health conditions made a plan or budget for how they used their income, on par with people without disability (74%).
• 34% of Australians with disability or long-term health conditions wanted to own a home but did not feel it was a realistic goal for them (versus 15% of people without a condition).
• Only half (51%) of Australians with disability or long-term health conditions felt confident in their ability to plan their financial future compared to 66% of Australians without a condition.

About ANZ’s Accessibility & Inclusion Plan:

Commencing in 2023, the commitments run for three years and will be registered with the Australian Human Rights Commission. ANZ’s first Accessibility & Inclusion Plan was published in 2007.

About the research:

The research draws on the insights and data from the ANZ’s 2021 Financial Wellbeing Survey of more than 3,500 Australian adults conducted in mid-2021. Approximately one-quarter (24%) responded that they lived with disability or a long-term health condition.

Source – Anz