Depression is a Disability under the Disability Discrimination Act and Reasonable Adjustments should be made

Under the Disability Discrimination Act employers are required not to discriminate against employees on the grounds of disability. Employers are also required to make reasonable adjustments, which can include altering working hours or transferring a member of staff to another role. Employees do not need to be registered disabled to be given protection under the act. The Disability Discrimination Act includes “hidden” disabilities such as depression. A man has been awarded compensation after an Employment Tribunal ruled that his employers committed indirect disability discrimination. The employee had been signed off sick by a doctor after falling ill with depression in January 2007. His employer, the Learning and Skills Council, held a series of meetings and, in the employee’s absence, decided to terminate his employment on the grounds of sickness absence. The employee could not attend the meeting because he was at a family funeral. The employers did not accept that the employee was disabled. However, the Employment Tribunal found that depression was a disability and that the employers had failed to consider reasonable adjustments, such as replacement employment, and therefore indirectly discriminated against the employee on the grounds of his disability. The employee was awarded compensation and has since found a job elsewhere. If you have been discriminated against on the grounds of disability, please contact Ashley Hunt on 0116 212 1000 now or complete one of the on-line forms.