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  • Introduction
  • How to use this resource
  • What do we mean?
  • What the law says
  • The recruitment process
  • Promoting well-being
  • Talking at an early stage
  • Issues to raise
  • Keeping in touch
  • Supporting an employee who is off sick
  • Returning to work
  • Examples of reasonable adjustments
  • Managing an ongoing illness while at work
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The recruitment process

In this section we offer some practical guidance to managers on the recruitment process.

Under discrimination law, the employer’s duty is to assess whether the candidate is the best person for the job in terms of his or her skills, aptitudes and experience, fairly assessing the capability of a person with mental health conditions to do the job, taking into account reasonable adjustments.

You cannot predict who will experience mental health conditions and so issues around recruitment usually arise in respect of a person who has experienced a mental health condition earlier in life or who has an ongoing problem.

Unfortunately, many people still assume that someone with a mental health condition will not be able to cope at work but neither diagnosis nor severity of symptoms are good predictors of likely employment outcomes. It is important to emphasise that the vast majority of people who have experienced a mental health condition can work successfully.

Evidence also shows that employers who do take on staff with mental health conditions, who have recruited fairly and got the right person for the right job, have had a positive experience and have not regretted their decision.

Disclosure of information

While some people are prepared to acknowledge their experience of mental health conditions in a frank and open way, others fear that stigma may jeopardise their current job, or prevent them getting a job in the future and may therefore not declare it on a form for fear of discrimination.

Under the terms of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) some people with mental health conditions are classified as being ‘disabled’. Some people do not consider themselves to be disabled but nonetheless have rights under equality legislation. Under the DDA a ‘disabled’ person does not have to tell an employer about their disability.


If however, the information is requested before the interview, by the occupational health department for example, then this data should be kept separate from the application and not be seen by those who are interviewing the candidate and who are involved in making the final decision.

It maybe appropriate to ask for health-related questions at the start of the recruitment process where jobs have specific health and fitness requirements. This is because, in these instances, it would not be advisable for people with certain health conditions to take on particular roles for health and safety reasons.

As with any other candidate, it is good practice to ensure that the candidate understands both the particular demands of the job and the working culture of the organisation, such as shift patterns, the cyclical nature of the business and deadline pressures.

By using the HSE managements standards you can conduct a risk assessment for the job in relation to work-related stress. This assessment can then be reviewed if problems develop during employment and form the basis of a referral to occupational health or other health professional.

What to do when a potential employee does disclose their mental health condition after the job offer has been made

If your future employee discloses that they have experienced mental ill-health in the past or currently have a mental health condition, you can then make any necessary reasonable adjustments to the workplace environment before they start work. A clinical diagnosis does not necessarily indicate what a person can or cannot do and the level of support needed, if any, will vary from person to person.

In larger companies there may be an occupational health check which can provide an opportunity for any reasonable adjustments to be discussed and how any subsequent episode of mental ill health will be managed.

In companies where there is no occupational health service, it is important to ask future employees if they would require any kind of adjustment or additional help. You can then seek advice if you need further professional guidance.

Managers and occupational health advisors should avoid;

• asking for information about treatment, the history of the illness or any information that is not relevant to the work situation, and
  
• assuming that a person with a mental health problem will be more vulnerable to workplace stress than any other employee.

What happens when a potential employee does not tell you about their mental health condition?

Some people with mental health conditions are too frightened of discrimination to apply for jobs. Those who do apply may not provide information about their mental health condition in a health questionnaire or tell you about it because they think that they may not be treated fairly or may not get the job.

If they are recruited however and this is later discovered they could lose their job. It is vital then for potential employees to be honest about their mental health as failure to do so will mean they are in breach of contract and would not be covered by the DDA. These employees also miss out on any ‘reasonable adjustments’ at work that could help them to do their job more easily.

Sometimes a potential employee may mention a mental health condition at interview. Again, the person should be considered in terms of whether or not they can do the job.

It might be worth asking at interview if they would require any kind of adjustment or additional support from you or the organisation to help them to do the job as specified.

It is good practice to;

• include a positive statement about employing people with disabilities in job advertisements
  
• make sure the recruitment process is fair - if a person with a mental health condition fulfils all the selection criteria, their health should not be a barrier
  
• make sure that you can give fair and truthful justification to a person with a mental health condition or a disability who is turned down, and
  
• make sure you understand and have policy and practice in place to manage reasonable adjustments.

Next page: Promoting well-being