‘On-offer’ Occupational Health R eferrals of Disabled Candidates Post I nterview
This guidance applies to Disabled People who are offered work at UCL. The Equality Act 2010 defines a Disabled Person as someone who has “a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse affect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”. This guidance therefore concerns those with
a newly diagnosed, pre-existing, emerging or changed physical, cognitive or mental health condition. There may be some occasions on which Occupational Health advice is sought after a conditional job offer has been made and prior to a confirmed offer being issued. This may sometimes be advisable if, for example, a job candidate discloses an impairment/condition to the recruiting manager during the recruitment process. This could occur if a candidate has asked for adjustments to be made at some point in the recruitment process. A candidate’s impairment/condition may also become ‘known’ to the recruitment panel. For instance, it will be clear that someone fits the Equality Act definition of being a Disabled Person if they have a speech impairment or use a Sign Language Interpreter at their interview.
The Equality Act 2010 prohibits asking health-related questions before a job offer has been made, except in very exceptional circumstances. Managers must not ask any health related questions or make Occupational Health referrals until a conditional job offer has been made, unless they have been advised otherwise by their HR Consultant. More information can be found here http://www. e cu.ac.uk/your-questions/pre-employment-health-questionnaires
It should be assumed that if a candidate has demonstrated that they have the necessary skills, knowledge, experience and qualifications to be offered an appointment, that any impairment/condition they have will not be a relevant factor when determining their capacity to undertake the duties of that appointment. The purpose of an Occupational Health referral therefore is to advise the recruitment manager on adjustments they can consider to enable the successful applicant to undertake their role successfully with as smooth a start to their work at UCL as possible. If the manager thinks that the workplace or the nature of the work to be undertaken is likely to create obstacles for a Disabled Person, adjustments may need to be made so that they can do the job which they have been offered. Under such circumstances, it may be helpful to make an ‘on-offer’ Occupational Health referral in order to obtain appropriate advice. This is likely to be particularly useful where the person who has been offered the job is unsure themselves as to the adjustments they might need.
Additional advice can also be sought from the Equalities and Diversity Team and Human Resources consultants, who will work together to give joined-up advice. An independent assessment can also be requested as part of an Access to Work (AtW) or Remploy application. AtW may be able to give detailed practical advice about specialist equipment and the need for support workers e.g. a hearing assistant although, it is often useful to have some idea of the type of support that may be needed prior to contacting AtW. For a new employee or for an employee who has changed post within UCL, any approach to AtW must take place within the first six weeks following the start date of the employee. Besides Departmental funding and resources available through AtW, the Equalities and Diversity Team has a small central budget which may be called upon to assist recruitment managers needing to make reasonable adjustments.
Once advice has been obtained from the employee themselves, where appropriate, the Occupational Health Service, the Equalities and Diversity Team and AtW or Remploy about the adjustments required by the newly appointed member of staff, the recruiting manager must decide whether or not some or all of these adjustments are ‘reasonable’. If it is believed that any of the requested adjustments may be ‘unreasonable’ and that failure to implement them may render it impossible for the person who has provisionally been offered the job to undertake key aspects of the role, the recruitment manager should consult with and take advice from HR. Under these circumstances, it may be lawful to retract the conditional job offer if the University can demonstrate that the adjustments required for this individual to be able to undertake the role are unreasonable and without them she/he would be ‘incapable’ of performing these tasks. Such an eventuality is extremely rare. It is unlikely that an individual will reach this stage in the recruitment process without having demonstrated adequately their capacity to undertake a given role, provided they have the necessary support and equipment in place to do so. UCL is a large, well resourced and inclusive employer and we anticipate that the vast majority of adjustments can be accommodated.