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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) |
The Employment
Rights Act 1996 (c. 18) is amended as follows. |
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(2) |
After Part 8A there is inserted— |
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80J |
Employment
retention assessment |
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(1) |
The Secretary of State shall
make regulations— |
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(a) |
entitling a disabled employee
who satisfies specified conditions |
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to
an employment retention assessment; |
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(b) |
prescribing the nature of
the employment retention assessment. |
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(2) |
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 |
Entitlement
to rehabilitation leave |
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(1) |
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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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) |
enabling
his employer to make reasonable adjustments to |
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working
conditions and arrangements. |
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(2) |
Regulations under subsection
(1) shall include provision for |
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(a) |
the extent of a disabled
employee's entitlement to leave under |
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(b) |
when leave under this section
may be taken. |
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80L |
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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(a) |
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) |
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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conditions
(except in so far as they are inconsistent with section |
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(c) |
is entitled to return from
leave to a job of a kind prescribed by |
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80M |
Complaint
to employment tribunal |
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(1) |
A disabled employee may
present a complaint to an employment |
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tribunal
that his employer— |
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(a) |
has unreasonably postponed
a period of rehabilitation leave |
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requested
by the employee; or |
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(b) |
has prevented or attempted
to prevent the employee from |
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taking
rehabilitation leave. |
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(2) |
An employment tribunal
shall not consider a complaint under this |
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section
unless it is presented— |
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(a) |
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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(b) |
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) |
Where an employment tribunal
finds a complaint under this section |
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(a) |
shall make a declaration
to that effect; and |
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(b) |
may make an award of compensation
to be paid by the |
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employer
to the employee. |
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(4) |
The amount of compensation
shall be such as the tribunal considers just |
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and
equitable in all the circumstances having regard to— |
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(a) |
the employer’s behaviour;
and |
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(b) |
any loss sustained by the
employee which is attributable to the |
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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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“health care professional”
has the same meaning as in the Welfare |
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(3) |
In section 236(3), after
“80G,” insert “80J(1), 80K”. |
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2 |
Short
title and commencement |
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(1) |
This Act may be cited as
the Employment Retention Act 2009. |
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(2) |
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) |
An order under subsection
(2) may contain transitional provisions and savings |
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relating to the provisions
being brought into force by the order. |
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