Disability Discrimination Act does cover
associative discrimination
In EBR Attridge Law LLP
and anor v Coleman, the EAT upheld the decision of an employment judge that the
Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) is capable of being interpreted so as
to protect people who suffer discrimination or harassment by reason of the
disability of another person.
Ms Coleman claims she was
subjected to less favourable treatment by reason of her association with her
disabled son. The ECJ ruled that EC law should be interpreted as protecting
those who, although not themselves disabled, nevertheless suffer discrimination
or harassment owing to their association with a disabled person. When the case
returned to an employment tribunal, an employment judge determined that the
DDA could be read in such a way as to
give effect to the Directive. The EAT rejected the employer’s appeal. As a
result:
A new
sub-section (5A) has been added to S.3A DDA to read: A
person also directly discriminates against
a person if he treats him
less favourably than he treats or would treat another
person by
reason of the disability of another person;
A
new sub-section (3) has been added to S.3B DDA to read: A
person also subjects
a person (A) to harassment where, for a reason
which relates to the disability
of another person (B), he engages in
unwanted conduct which has the purpose or
effect of – (a) violating
A’s dignity, or (b) creating an intimidating,
hostile, degrading,
humiliating or offensive environment for him.
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