Disability Discrimination Act

This information applies to people in the UK only. If you live outside the UK, then more information about epilepsy and employment where you are will be available from your local epilepsy organisation.

You may be very familiar with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) but may not know that people with epilepsy, or a history of epilepsy, are covered. This applies even if they are not currently having seizures or taking medication.

Under the DDA it is illegal to discriminate against disabled people. Discrimination can occur if:

• a disabled person is treated less favourably than someone else; and
• the treatment is for a reason relating to the person's disability; and
• this treatment cannot be justified.

As an employer, this means that you must not treat someone with epilepsy less favourably than another person, unless you can justify the reason for doing so. The only exception to this would be if there were health and safety reasons for the less favourable treatment.

Last updated 2 May 2007