Landmark Legal Ruling To Protect Carers

Carers are to receive the same protection as disabled people against discrimination, according to a landmark legal ruling.

The European Court of Justice, in the ruling yesterday, said that the laws - which protect disabled people against discrimination - not only apply to the person themselves, but also to their carer.

The judgement follows an historic case taken by carer Sharon Coleman who claimed she was discriminated against because she had a disabled son and was treated "less favourably" then employees whose children weren't disabled.

Ms Coleman claimed that her employer, a London legal firm, refused to allow her to return to the same job after maternity leave and accused her of being "lazy" when she requested time off to care for her child.

In March, 2005, Ms Coleman accepted voluntary redundancy and in August of the same year, she lodged a claim with the Employment Tribunal.

The European Court of Justice said in their ruling: "The Court observes that the directive defines the principle of equal treatment as meaning that there is to be no direct or indirect discrimination whatsoever on the grounds, inter alia, of disability, and that it applies to all persons in relation to employment and working conditions, including dismissals and pay."

Carers Northern Ireland says that the ruling could give new rights to thousands of carers in Northern Ireland who are "struggling to combine caring work with paid work".

Helen Ferguson, Director of Carers NI, said: "This is an historic step towards true equality for carers. Too many carers face discrimination at work, yet they are the bedrock of our communities and society.

"Although this ruling applies only to parents of disabled children, we will be urging the Government to extend it to all people caring for others, for example a spouse, parent or friend. We are still waiting for the proposed Single Equality Bill for Northern Ireland and we will press for it to include all carers.

"How we help families care for elderly and disabled relatives will be one of the biggest challenges of the 21st Century. All the Governments across the UK, including the Northern Ireland Assembly, have an opportunity to get the right laws in place to deal with it. Government should take a proactive approach and include all carers, rather than waiting for further cases to be taken through the courts."

Carers NI say that the judgement is likely to have "huge implications" for discrimination and employment law as employers will now have to ensure that carers in their workforce are not treated differently to other employees.

According to Carers NI, there are 4,439,786 working age carers in the UK, 2,510,034 of whom are in work.

(DS/JM)