Background Blog: A Norwegian with depression?
In August 1998, the Norwegian government issued a press release. Their prime minister couldn’t get out of bed.
It sounds like the start of a fairy story but it’s true. Kjell Magne Bondevik had been in politics for 30 years and was voted in as prime minister in 1997. The following year he was struck by depression, brought on by work related stress and grief after the loss of three close friends.
He took a brave decision to be honest about his absence and that act earned him a thousand letters of support from his countrymen. Some told him that, for the first time, they too could now be honest about their own mental health problems. Mr Bondevik spent nearly a month recovering in a cottage in the mountains, doing what he called ‘walking and talking therapy’.
High profile cases such as this have been praised by the press and mental health organisations but what about an average worker. Would their employer be as understanding?
In the UK, people with mental health problems that have a substantial effect on their day-to day life, are protected in a range of situations by the Equality Act 2010. In theory this protects you and I from dismissal or unfair treatment based on a mental illness or condition. But who upholds this?
An employment tribunal will accept claims for unfair dismissal and discrimination but since October 2013 fees have been introduced; £250 for the claim and £950 for the hearing. These fees can be waived as long as the claimant has less than £4000 in savings or other disposable capital and (for a single person) earns less than £1085 before tax per month.
So someone with few savings, who has lost their job, found another and is paid national minimum wage at £6.31, for 40 hours per week, will be helped. However, a partner’s wage is also taken into account and a couple is only permitted to earn £160 more than a single person before having to pay tribunal fees.
The system will grant partial remission for people earning more with an allowance for any children they have. Basically they pay £5 for every £10 they earn over the threshold, which may not be so prohibitive.
But remember, these fees have to be paid before anyone starts to argue their case and a tribunal wants to see a claim backed up by some form of evidence. This could be hard to provide, especially in a case of discrimination that has occurred at the recruitment stage. In rural areas there is often a further complication in that many jobs are seasonal or offered on a zero-hours basis. Evidence that someone has not been re-employed or given a decent number of hours due to discrimination can be extremely hard to present.
This is why campaigns such as Time To Change, led by MIND and Rethink Mental Illness are important. Thanks to them, since 2010 it has been unlawful for an employer to ask for medical information before a job has been offered. Some questions regarding reasonable adjustments are still allowed and only the Equality and Human Rights Commission can challenge an employer still asking health questions.
A change of attitudes is taking place and some of the UK’s larger companies have been showing their support by signing a Time To Change Organisational Pledge, a public statement often backed by a change in policy and practices. Councils, universities, high street retailers, utility companies and many more national organisations have backed the campaign tackling stigma and mental health.
Many small business owners are among those signing the pledge to make a difference in their communities. Some, such as the independent hostels supporting my walk and events in Cumbria are really stepping up to the mark and this project would not have been possible without them.
As I was researching the No Man Is An Island campaign, I was dismayed to find that the YHA has not made a pledge, especially considering their charitable status and strong presence in rural communities. It isn’t just Norwegian prime ministers that understand the benefits of escaping to the countryside for walking and talking therapy, for many of us a hostel is an affordable way to do this. I'd sleep better knowing that all guests and employees in a hostel I stay at are treated equally and fairly.
So I have made a second pledge; whenever possible, I will always spend my money on services and products from businesses that understand it’s time to end mental health discrimination.
Links related to this blog:
WHO interview with Kjell Magne Bondevik
Relevant articles from the Guardian
Related pages from GOV.UK
Pledge pages for Time To Change
