The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) has launched a new report on ‘The legal protection of persons with mental health problems under non-discrimination law’ today.
This publication analyses how national and international non-discrimination legislation and case law defines “disability” and the consequences of this for the “duty to provide reasonable accommodation” for people with disabilities in employment.
The findings of this comparative legal research show that people with mental health problems in the EU can benefit from the prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of disability under EU law.
The research also looked at the duty to provide reasonable accommodation in employment for people with mental health problems. This means, for example, that an employer should consider the needs of employees to enable them to work, such as adapting working hours or some conditions. According to the report, in most EU Member States people with mental health problems can benefit from such “reasonable accommodation” measures at work. Furthermore, some EU Member States are extending these rights to other areas of daily life, such as education and the provision of goods and services, in line with international standards, such as the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Such countries include Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Ireland, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom.
The FRA recommends that other Member States consider these examples providing even more comprehensive protection.
The FRA is also looking at conducting research on the actual experiences of people with mental health problems and people with intellectual disabilities. The results of this research will be made available in 2012.
You can find out more about our disability research on the FRA website.
Please find the link to this latest report and web statement for your kind information: http://fra.europa.eu/fraWebsite/attachments/FRA-2011-Legal-protection-persons-mental-health-problems_EN.pdf.
We hope that you will find this overview useful.
If you have any questions, we will be happy to provide more information.
Best regards,
Ines Albergaria, on behalf of the FRP Team
Ines Albergaria
Communication & Awareness Raising Department
European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights
Schwarzenbergplatz 11 A - 1040 Vienna Tel + 43 (0) 158 030 832
E-mail: ines.albergaria@fra.europa.eu
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