New guidance on reasonable adjustments for mental health guidance for workers and employers

ACAS launched on 17 April 2023 new guidance relating to those who need reasonable adjustments for mental health at work. They have outlined what considerations should be taken into account and what practical steps employer should be aware of.

The Equality Act 2010 defines disability as a mental or physical impairment that has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out day-to-day activities. Mental health conditions fall within the scope of this definition and it’s important to recognise that mental health conditions can be sudden or they can build up over time; they can also be hidden and therefore hard to spot.

Reasonable adjustments are changes that employer’s must make, by law, to remove or reduce a disadvantage related to someone’s disability. What is considered ‘reasonable’ varies on a case-by-case basis and certain factors must be taken into consideration by the employer, such as whether it is practical, affordable and whether it would in fact reduce or remove the disadvantage.

ACAS advises that employers and employees should “work together to agree and review reasonable adjustments over time to make sure that the adjustments work.” They suggested that reasonable adjustments can cover a range of solutions. They include changes relating to the workplace, someone’s working arrangements, suggesting alternative ways to do things or providing certain support services.

They further expand on these examples, suggesting adjustments of:

• “reviewing tasks or deadlines to help someone have a reasonable workload while managing their mental health
• breaking down work into short term tasks to reduce the complexity of someone’s work and to provide structure to the working day
• reviewing someone’s responsibilities to reduce those that are more stressful – for example reducing phone calls or customer facing work
• moving someone into a different role or department if their current job has a negative impact on their mental health
• reviewing tasks or deadlines to help someone have a reasonable workload while managing their mental health
• breaking down work into short term tasks to reduce the complexity of someone’s work and to provide structure to the working day
• reviewing someone’s responsibilities to reduce those that are more stressful – for example reducing phone calls or customer facing work
• moving someone into a different role or department if their current job has a negative impact on their mental health
• making sure someone is working with trusted people to limit the impact of different working and communication styles
• agreeing a preferred communication method to help reduce anxiety – for example by avoiding spontaneous phone calls
• allowing someone to work from home to manage distractions or engage in activities that allow them to manage their mental health – for example, so they can take regular breaks without feeling other people are watching them
• relocating someone’s workspace to a quieter area to reduce sensory demands
• providing rest areas away from the main staff area to allow someone to rest away from social demands
• providing reserved parking to reduce the stress of commuting
• offering paid time off for someone to attend appointments in work time
• being flexible with ‘trigger points’ for absence so that someone is not disadvantaged by taking absence when they are unwell
• offering an extended phased return to support someone to build up hours gradually and continue their recovery
• modifying supervision to provide regular check-ins, prioritising work and creating structure in the working day
• providing training or coaching to build confidence in skills relevant to the job
• providing a buddy or mentor to be a dedicated person who can support with work tasks”

ACAS’s new guidance on reasonable adjustments on mental health can be found here

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