EPILEPSY, EMPLOYMENT AND THE LAW: EPILEPSY AND EMPLOYMENT
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There were two schools of thought about employers and epilepsy, Tom would say when any of his friends asked him if he had had any luck getting a job yet. One is that if you don’t tell them you have epilepsy and they find out you ’11 get sacked on the spot. The other is that if you do tell them, the chances are that they won’t employ you anyway. Tom was quite clear about where he stood. He was an up-front sort of chap, and he didn’t like anything that smacked of deception. So he always made it quite clear to any prospective employer that he had had epilepsy since he was a small boy and that he had to take drugs all the time to control it — in fact that he was likely to be quite a liability to any firm willing to employ him.The next time Tom went to see his doctor, he was asked the same question: ‘Isn’t it time you got a job, Tom? It’s over two years since you left school. You can’t spend the rest of your life hanging about.’ Tom was aggrieved. You couldn’t say he hadn’t tried. But he had to be honest about his epilepsy, didn’t he? Otherwise it wouldn’t be fair.’That’s all very well, Tom,’ said his doctor. ‘But don’t you think you might paint a slightly rosier picture for a prospective employer? Can I remind you that your seizures are well under control? You haven’t had one in two years, have you? And two seizure-free years means that you don’t actually have epilepsy. You could do pretty much any job you wanted to — I’m assuming you don’t want to be a steeplejack. Is it possible that you are actually not too keen to find a job? Think about it . . .’
If your seizures are well controlled, there is no reason why you should not work, or why you should have to seek ‘safe’ or sheltered employment, why you should be passed over for promotion, or why you should not work near machinery.Prejudice and misconceptions about epilepsy account for most of the difficulties you may have in getting employment. For example, although the drugs you are taking may make you less alert, your epilepsy itself will not affect your ability to handle machines. Much is made of the dangers of falling forward onto machinery during a fit, but in fact most people who fall during a fit fall backwards, not forwards.Unless your epilepsy is very severe or caused by serious brain damage there is no reason why your employment prospects should be limited. Probably about 85 per cent of people who have epilepsy should be able to find employment in normal jobs in the normal way. One study from Canada showed that when local doctors, social workers and epilepsy associations were prepared to support local business firms, it was very much easier for people with epilepsy to obtain employment, partly because such co-operation led to greater understanding and lack of prejudice. More important, local employers found that employees with epilepsy were more likely to be reliable as they valued their jobs and did not want to lose them.
RESTRICTIONS IN EMPLOYMENTThere are only a few occupations you will not be able to follow, including heavy goods vehicle or public service driving, becoming a commercial pilot or joining the armed services. A few potentially hazardous jobs, such as a steeplejack or deep-sea diver are also obviously precluded.You will not be able to become a merchant seaman if you have had any history of fits after the age of 5 years. If you are already a merchant seaman and then develop epilepsy you will be able to continue your employment once you have remained seizure-free for at least two years provided that you are working on a ship carrying a medical officer and are not directly involved with the safety of the ship or passengers.If you are currently having seizures you cannot be recruited for the police, or as a traffic warden. However, those with a past history of epilepsy are considered individually. Applicants for teacher training should have been free from seizures for two years at the time of applying.
SEEKING HELPIf your epilepsy is disabling, and you have problems finding work, you can seek help from the PACT — Placing, Assessment and Counselling Team. PACT can be contacted through your local Job Centre. One of their specially trained Disability Employment Advisors will help you decide what job you want to do and help you find it, and offer advice on a wide range of services, including job training, rehabilitation courses, and travel grants for getting to and from work.
VOLUNTARY WORKIf you have been trying, and failing, to get work for some time, it is worth thinking about the possibility of doing unpaid voluntary work for a while. This keeps you in touch with people and with the working world, and may also give you experience which will be valuable in your future job-seeking. Your local Council for Voluntary Services or Social Services office are the people to contact if the idea of voluntary work appeals to you.
APPLYING FOR A JOBWhen you are applying for a new job, you have to keep two clear aims in mind. First you must convince your prospective employer that you are perfectly capable of doing the job in question. Second, you must make them believe that your epilepsy does not play a particularly important part in your life; that for you it is no big deal.Unfortunately, many people with epilepsy have learnt through bitter experience that even to mention that you have epilepsy may lose them the job, but that not mentioning it may eventually have the same effect. It can be a no-win situation, but perhaps the best approach is to sell yourself and your abilities before even mentioning the fact that you have epilepsy. So do not mention it on your application form, unless you are specifically asked, or even during the initial phase of the interview. It should be your final disclosure, and when you make it, do so briefly and casually, as an aside. Then, if your interviewer asks you any further questions, answer them as honestly and straightforwardly as you can.’I take the attitude,’ one woman says, ‘that if a firm don’t want to employ me and my epilepsy, then I’m sure I don’t want to work for them.’
PENSION SCHEMESThe fact that you have epilepsy should make no difference to your inclusion in your employer’s pension scheme. The general advice of the Occupational Pensions Board is that if someone is suitable for a job, then they are also suitable for inclusion in the pension scheme.
ACCIDENT INSURANCEEmployers’ liability policies cover all employees. Those with epilepsy are no exception. Provided you have declared your epilepsy and you are not employed in a job for which your epilepsy makes you quite unsuitable, accident insurance should not be a problem for you or your employer.
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