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Make
provision for a statutory right to an employment retention assessment
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to determine entitlement to a
period of rehabilitation leave for newly disabled
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people and people whose existing
impairments change; and for connected
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Be
it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by
and with the advice and
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consent of the Lords Spiritual
and Temporal, and Commons, in this present
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Parliament assembled, and by
the authority of the same, as follows:—
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(1)
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The Employment
Rights Act 1996 (c. 18) is amended as follows.
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(2)
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After Part 8A there is inserted—
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5
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80J
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Employment
retention assessment
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(1)
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The Secretary of State shall
make regulations—
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(a)
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entitling a disabled employee
who satisfies specified conditions
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to
an employment retention assessment;
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(b)
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prescribing the nature of the
employment retention assessment.
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10
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(2)
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This assessment must be carried
out by a health care professional
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approved
by the Secretary of State.
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80K
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Entitlement
to rehabilitation leave
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(1)
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The Secretary of State shall
make regulations specifying the conditions
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under
which a disabled employee, who has been assessed under
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15
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section
80J, may be absent from work on rehabilitation leave under this
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section
for the purposes of—
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(c)
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enabling
his employer to make reasonable adjustments to
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working
conditions and arrangements.
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(2)
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Regulations under subsection
(1) shall include provision for
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(a)
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the extent of a disabled employee's
entitlement to leave under
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5
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(b)
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when leave under this section
may be taken.
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80L
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Rights
during and after rehabilitation leave
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An
employee who is absent from work during a period of rehabilitation
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10
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(a)
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is entitled, for such purposes
and to such extent as may be
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prescribed,
to the benefits of the terms and conditions which
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would
have been applied, if he had not been absent;
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(b)
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is bound, for such purposes
and to such extent as may be
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prescribed,
by obligations arising under those terms and
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15
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conditions
(except in so far as they are inconsistent with section
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(c)
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is entitled to return from leave
to a job of a kind prescribed by
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80M
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Complaint
to employment tribunal
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20
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(1)
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A disabled employee may present
a complaint to an employment
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tribunal
that his employer—
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(a)
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has unreasonably postponed a
period of rehabilitation leave
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requested
by the employee; or
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(b)
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has prevented or attempted to
prevent the employee from
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25
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taking
rehabilitation leave.
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(2)
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An employment tribunal shall
not consider a complaint under this
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section
unless it is presented—
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(a)
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before the end of the period
of three months beginning with the
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date
(or last date) of the matters complained of; or
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30
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(b)
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within such further period as
the tribunal considers reasonable
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in
a case where it is satisfied that it was not reasonably
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practicable
for the complaint to be presented before the end of
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that
period of three months.
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(3)
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Where an employment tribunal
finds a complaint under this section
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35
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(a)
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shall make a declaration to that
effect; and
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(b)
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may make an award of compensation
to be paid by the
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employer
to the employee.
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(4)
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The amount of compensation
shall be such as the tribunal considers just
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40
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and
equitable in all the circumstances having regard to—
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(a)
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the employer’s behaviour;
and
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(b)
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any loss sustained by the employee
which is attributable to the
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45
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For
the purposes of this Part—
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“disabled employee” means an employee who has a disability,
as
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defined in section 1(1) of the
Disability Discrimination Act 1995
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“employment retention
assessment” has the same meaning as
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“work-focused health-related
assessment” in the Welfare
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5
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“health care professional”
has the same meaning as in the Welfare
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(3)
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In section 236(3), after “80G,”
insert “80J(1), 80K”.
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2
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Short
title and commencement
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10
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(1)
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This Act may be cited as the
Employment Retention Act 2008.
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(2)
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This Act (apart from this section)
comes into force on such day as the Secretary
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of State may appoint by order
made by statutory instrument, and different
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days may be appointed for different
provisions or for different purposes.
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(3)
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An order under subsection (2)
may contain transitional provisions and savings
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15
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relating to the provisions being
brought into force by the order.
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