Our DisAbility Glossary

Disability Glossary to help understand terms and phrases you may never of heard before

The disability sector uses many acronyms, terms and phrases that you may have never come across before. It can feel very overwhelming as you learn to navigate this space.

This glossary is an active work in progress that Team EmployAbility will constantly add too. We have included medical, disability, employment acronyms, as well as phrases you may hear in the workplace.

ABI  Acquired Brain Injury 
ABT  Active Based Therapy 
ADE  Australian Disability Enterprise 
ASCED  Australian Standard Classification of Education 
AT  Assistant technology 
BEC  Building Employer Confidence 
CAPT  Continuous Accessible Path of Travel 
CHI  Closed Head Injury 
COGNITION  The mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses. 
COMORBIDITY  The simultaneous presence of two or more diseases or medical conditions in a patient. 
D&I  Diversity & Inclusion 
DD  Developmental Delays 
DEN  Disability Employee Network 
DES  Centrelink Program: Disability Employment Program 
DISC  Disability Inclusion Status Check aka Disability Inclusion Action Plan 
DMS  Disability Management Service 
DRC  Disability Royal Commission 
EA  EmployAbility 
EC  Employment Coach 
EJP  Employment Journey Plan 
ERG  Employee Resource Group 
ESS  Employment Support Service 
FPDN  First Peoples Disability Network 
GDD  Global Developmental Delay 
HYPERSOMNIA  Excessive Sleepiness 
ID  Intellectual Disability 
ILO  Independent Living Options 
JD  Job Description 
LIVED EXPERIENCE  A person’s own experience of living with a disability or having a close relationship with someone with disability, e.g. a family member or partner. 
LMS  Learning Management Systems 
MAIN JOB  The job in which a person usually works the most hours. 
NDAP  National Disability Advocacy Program 
NDIS  National Disability Insurance Scheme 
NEDA  National Ethnic Alliance 
PD  Position Description 
PPE  Principal Pedestrian Entrance 
PTA  Post Traumatic Amnesia: a state of confusion that occurs immediately following a traumatic brain injury (TBI) in which the injured person is disoriented and unable to remember events that occur after the injury. The person may be unable to state their name, where they are and/or what the time is. 
S&C  Strength & Conditioning 
SCI  Spinal Cord Injury 
SCIA  Spinal Cord Injuries Australia 
SDA  Specialist Disability Accommodation 
SDM  Supported Decision Making 
SIL  Supported Independent Living 
TBI  Traumatic Brain Injury 
TL  Team Leader 
TSP  Typical Support Package 
WORK PLACE ACCOMMODATIONS  An adjustment to a work environment e.g. specialised equipment, extra time to complete tasks etc 
WWC or WWCC  Working With Children or Working With Children Check 

Related Articles

Read our other latest blog posts.

View All
Disability Glossary to help understand terms and phrases you may never of heard before

Our DisAbility Glossary

This glossary is an active work in progress that Team EmployAbility will constantly add too....
Read More
New findings from Diversity Council Australia’s 2025–2026 Inclusion@Work Index highlight why organisations must shift from good intentions to structural action.

DCA: Workers With Disability Still Experiencing High Levels of Workplace Discrimination: Why Inclusion Must Be Embedded, Not Optional

During a recent ABC Radio interview, Dr Rose D’Almada-Remedios, DCA Head of Research, shared early...
Read More
EmployAbility works with organisations to build accessible, inclusive workplaces and provide practical, lived‑experience‑led advice.

Work place accomidation tips & tools

Australian disability discrimination laws, including the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA), do not rely on...
Read More
Meet Clint Beattie, TBI Employment Coach. Traumatic Brain Injury employment support

Meet Clint

Hi my name is Clint Beattie! I am one of the Employment coaches and lived...
Read More

Join our Talent Pool

Our EmployAbility program is funded by the Department of Social Services Linkage and Capacity building program, with a goal to improve employment outcomes for people living with a physical disability.

If you have a physical disability and are looking for specialised support to assist you to find a role with an inclusive employer please feel free to join our talent pool.

Your Personal Information

Your Name(Required)
Address(Required)

Skills & Areas of Interest

Areas of Interest(Required)
Upload your resume in .pdf, .doc or .docx format
Max. file size: 25 MB.
Upload your cover letter in .pdf, .doc or .docx format
Max. file size: 25 MB.
This field is hidden when viewing the form
This field is hidden when viewing the form
This field is hidden when viewing the form
Submit