Home

Overview

Disability

Employment

Services

Education

Benefits

Business

Advice

Links

More...

Disclaimer - please read

These pages relate principally to the United Kingdom.

RSS Feed

What's new

June 2009

• Chief Constable of Dumfries & Galloway v Adams - nightshift working can be a 'normal day-to-day activity'. so substantial effects of an impairment during night shifts can make it a 'disability' within the DDA. The case also considers the European Court decision of Chacón Navas.
• Stockton on Tees Borough Council v Aylott - the Employment Appeal Tribunal considered direct discrimination claims based on stereotypical assumptions, and also found that the House of Lords decision in Malcolm extends to employment, limiting claims for disability related discrimination.

May 2009

• Update on UN Convention - the UK intends to ratify the Convention in June, subject to some reservations and 'interpretative declarations'.
• R (N) v London Borough of Dagenham and Barking Independent Appeal Panel (Feb 2009) - Court of Appeal says the House of Lords decision in Malcolm extends to education.
• House of Commons Work and Pensions Committee has made various recommendations beyond what is in the Equality Bill, including to broaden the definition of disability, and Equality Tribunals to make it easier to claim on provision of services.
• Consultation on EU anti-discrimination directive proposal - UK Government consultation.

April 2009

• Remedying the Malcolm case - do the Equality Bill proposals work?
• The Equality Bill was published on 27th April 2009. There is also a new consultation document on multiple discrimination.
• Richmond Adult Community College v McDougall - the Court of Appeal held early last year that in considering whether at the time of the alleged discrimination a subsequent recurrence of substantial effects from a disability was likely, the fact that a subsequent recurrence actually happened should be left out of account.
• Bill of Rights and Responsibilities - in its Green Paper on this, the Government proposes to "set out in any Bill of Rights and Responsibilities an accessible and straightforward statement of equality to embody its central place in UK society."
• Matuszowicz v Kingston Upon Hull City Council - the Court of Appeal has decided that even where failure to make a reasonable adjustment in employment is continuing and not deliberate, there is a cut-off point for when a claim can be made.
• Equality Bill to cover discrimination by association and perception - Harriet Harman has announced the Bill will go beyond what is legally required to comply with the European Court's decision in Coleman v Attridge Law.
• New rules on disciplinary and grievance procedures - from 6 April these allow greater flexibility when resolving workplace disputes. Under transitional provisions, the previous rules continue to apply in some cases.

March 2009

• Eastern and Costal Kent PCT v Grey - the EAT has said it is harder than previously thought for an employer to rely on the 'lack of knowledge' defence where he fails to make reasonable adjustements.
• ury service - including special arrangements for stammering, and possibility of being excused.
• UN Disability Convention - the UK has started the parliamentary process to ratify this, and has announced the reservations it proposes to make.

February 2009

• Disability Symbol: 'Two ticks' - employers who have signed up to the scheme guarantee disabled people an interview if they meet the minimum criteria for the job vacancy
• Are presentation skills really necessary? - example added to section about presentations in the recruitment process.
• RADAR briefing on Malcolm case - the policy briefing takes stammering as an example to illustrate the effects of the case.
• Child Support Agency (Dudley) v Truman - the EAT has decided that the important House of Lords decision in LB Lewisham v Malcolm extends to employment.
• UN Disability Convention - Government to sign Optional Protocol, allowing individuals to petition for breach of their rights.
• Tribunal decision in Coleman case - in November an Employment Tribunal held (subject to appeal) that the DDA can be interpreted so as to prohibit discrimination by association.
• Reasonable adjustment for meetings - added new adjustment of distributing written material beforehand.
• HM Land Registy v Wakefield, and 'Examples of reasonable adjustments' page (particularly Assessment of oral skills), updated in the light of the Employment Appeal Tribunal decision in December.

January 2009

• A Sun newspaper article reports that a police officer's probationary period has been extended after he repeatedly failed passing-out exams because of difficulty talking. He is working in an admin job.
• 'About this web site' page updated

December 2008

• Direct discrimination page reviewed and updated.
• The employer has won its appeal against the decision in Wakefield v HM Land Registry. The Employment Appeal Tribunal decision is at www.employmentappeals.gov.uk/decisionsTEMP/07_0530rjfhLBZT.doc
• 'Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland' page updated, including new links for Isle of Man.
• Welfare benefit reform - Government White Paper.
• SCA Packaging v Boyle - Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland decision on a voice management regime for voice nodules. It helps support the argument that a person who stammers can still be 'disabled' if they are speaking fluently using speech techniques.
• Human Rights Act pages updated

November 2008

• 'Indirect discrimimation' consultation - Government proposes a radical change to remedy the House of Lords decision in Lewisham v Malcolm.
• 'Limited capability for work' - how does the test for the new Employment and support allowance (ESA) apply to stammering. Also revamp of ESA information and short page on 'Limited capability for work-related activity'.
• Criticism of EHRC on its First Anniversary.
• Use of voice risk analysis technology for benefit claims - update.
• General exam boards - update for rule change from 24th October on exemption from exam components.
• Proposed changes pages updated for Government response to the Discrimination Law Review (July 2008).
• Differences in Northern Ireland guidance on definition of 'disability' - comparing the NI 2008 guidance on stammering with the 2006 guidance applying to the rest of the UK.

October 2008

• Employment and support allowance now in force for new claimants, though there is sometimes still the possibility of claiming incapacity benefit or income support on the basis of incapacity by backdating a claim to before 27th October.
• Job adverts updated for European Court of Justice decision in Firma Feryn.
• 'Fan gets apology from Setanta' (external link) - link to article from Manchester Evening News, on being laughed at because of speech problems in phone call. (Linked from Services: examples and Guidelines for service providers.)
• Disability equality duty update - recent court cases which given real teeth to the obligations of public authorities under the 'general duty'.
• Training providers for organisations - providers focusing on stammering and other communication disabilities.
• Update on Proposals for a new non-discrimination directive - European Ministers discussed them on 2nd October, and www.1million4disability.eu now includes a letter to petition signatories about the proposals and EDF's detailed position paper on them.
• Case study of being given own small office as reasonable adjustment, where open plan office was triggering social anxiety.

September, 2008

• New conciliation service in Northern Ireland - the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland has launched a conciliation service for complaints about services, premises, or education.

August, 2008

• Alternatives to phone when claiming for Jobseekers allowance.
• Social security benefits page updated, including Pathways to Work (work-focused interviews) and Employment and support allowance.
• Employment FAQs updated for the House of Lords decision in LB Lewisham v Malcolm.

July, 2008

• Social security: proposed changes - includes July 2008 Green Paper.
• Consultation draft of new ACAS Code of Practice on discipline and grievance available at www.acas.org.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=880&p=0 (issued May 2008). More on proposed changes to employment dispute resolution...
• Coleman case result - European Court of Justice confirms law is not limited to discrimination against the disabled person. It can include a discrimination against a carer, for example.
• London Borough of Lewisham v Malcolm is a hugely significant case in which the House of Lords has overturned long-established case law on 'disability-related discrimination'. For the time being at least, this ground is likely to be much less useful to claimants, who will seek to rely instead on breach of the reasonable adjustment duty.
• Link to Equal Rights Trust - international charity whose projects include drawing up Principles on Equality which are endorsed by prominent experts around the world (linked from links page).
• Proposal for new European directive providing protection against discrimination beyond the workplace.

June, 2008

• Equality Bill announcement by Harriet Harman, including proposals on the single equality duty, transparency, and enforcement.
• From April 2008, Northern Ireland has revised Guidance on the meaning of disability.
• Disabled Students' Allowances for electronic fluency devices - update
• The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities came into force in Spring 2008. The UK has signed the Convention but has not yet ratified it.