Black&White | Watching Brief

The Equality Act 2010 excludes certain ‘grey area’ conditions from protection under discrimination law.  For example, smokers, drug addicts and alcoholics can no longer attribute their condition to disability (unless it has a proven causal link to a medical intervention) and voyeurs, sex abusers and flashers cannot expect employers to tolerate their behaviour on the basis that it constitutes a mental disability.

All this is great news for employers who can run their businesses without being derailed by repeated absences, conflicts and other distractions that impact operational effectiveness.