Covered under the Equality Act???

[JS77]

Hi,

I am having issues with my employer relating to my status under the Equality Act. I have been struggling with chronic pain for almost 3 years and still no closer to a diagnosis. Has anyone else been in a similar situation? I would really appreciate some advice about how to deal with this. I have had 2 Occupational Health reviews and the last one didn't specify whether or not I am covered under the Act but advised my employer that it would be ‘prudent’ to consider my ongoing symptoms under the Act.

Thanks.

Jo x

[Char411]

I had an occupational health assessment yesterday and in his letter to my HR department he said I was covered under the equality act 2010, I don’t know if he’s correct or not but I was relieved to hear him say that. I’m not sure how crucial diagnosis is regarding the equality act.

Sending you big hugs and sorry I can’t be more helpful x

[JS77 in reply to Char411]

Glad to hear you had such a positive outcome. Have you had a diagnosis?

Thanks x

[Char411 in reply to JS77]

Hi,

Yes I was diagnosed in May via a laparoscopy. It took 18 months to finally get a confirmed diagnosis after all my other tests were clear

Good luck x

[Sfarre]

You're disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a 'substantial' and 'long-term' negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities. A diagnosis is certainly helpful, but any evidence or proof of impairment that is having a substantial effect is very useful. At the end of the day, it is actually only a judge in a court of law that ultimately decides if you are covered -- if it comes to that, of course!

My advice would be that if you are worried about your employment status under the act, is to collect evidence to support a potential case - even if its just a symptom diary.

Also - an employer should allow reasonable adjustments to your working environment and schedule, if instructed to do so by OH. My reasonable adjustments include being able to work from home, more flexible breaks, and extra sick days.

Hope that helps, best of luck.

[JS77 in reply to Sfarre]

Thanks so much. I have received copies of my medical file for the last three years and have been keeping a pain diary for over 19 months. Planning to present info from both at my next review meeting next week x