Associative disability discrimination – What on earth is that?

26th October 2015

Put simply this is the less favorable treatment of an employee because they have caring responsibilities. Whilst reasonable adjustments are not required for the employee themselves as they are not disabled , an employer cannot treat them less favourably when selecting for posts, promotion, pay rises, redundancy or other employment related decisions. An employee cannot be dismissed due to their caring responsibilities.

So what should we do – be consistent, objective and transparent in any employment decisions you make. In particular be careful in the use of “attendance” criteria for any decisions as they can very often lead back to caring responsibilities.

The caring responsibilities of all us are growing and will not just cover childcare but also elderly relatives and friends – don’t just take situations at face value but investigate before taking a decision. When in doubt contact Heads HR .