Work, antidepressants and the law
Updated on 15 June 2009
Have you ever taken antidepressants? If the answer is yes, would you mention it when applying for a new job? How many of us could find ourselves accused of fraud for not disclosing we have, at some stage, taken antidepressants?
Christine Laird did not mention she had taken anti-depressants when she applied for the post of managing director at Cheltenham Borough Council.
She says although she had suffered depression in the past, she was not ill when she applied for the job.
But the council says she deceived them by not mentioning her history of mental illness on its pre-employment medical questionnaire.
It claims it was "saddled with a medically unfit managing director" and attempted to sue Christine Laird for almost £1m for "fraudulent or negligent misrepresentation". But the council's claim has been rejected.
Many employees could find themselves accused of fraud for not admitting they had taken antidepressants.
Mental health charities like Mind estimate that one in four of us will experience depression.
And experts think depression is rising due to the pressures of the recession.
The Royal College of General Practitioners, says its GPs have noticed an increase in patients with symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress over the last six months.
More and more of us are being treated for depression with drugs.
The NHS statistics on the amount of antidepressants we are taking are striking.
In the last recession, in 1992, doctors wrote out almost 10 million prescriptions for antidepressants. Last year, in 2007, doctors issued 34 million prescriptions for antidepressants.
But although millions of people are taking antidepressants today, still, very few people tell their employer. It appears a fear of stigma and discrimination is justified.
'I would rather lose my job and be fired for a mental health issue, than I would be having to watch my back constantly when I'm at work.'Mental health patient Andrea
Last year the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development asked employers about their attitudes to mental illness.
According to their survey:
- 60 per cent of employers will not consider taking on someone with a mental health problem
- 10 per cent of employers have withdrawn a job offer after finding out an applicant lied about their health on a pre-employment questionnaire
- 7 per cent of employers have sacked someone for lying about their health.
Andrea works in corporate wellbeing - advising companies on how to look after their employees' mental and physical health.
The irony is she feels she has to hide her own mental illness. Andrea has bi-polar disorder. She has lied about having a mental illness throughout her career, including in pre-employment medical questionnaires.
"I would rather lose my job and be fired for a mental health issue, than I would be having to watch my back constantly when I'm at work. Because you get to the point where you can't even take a day off sick with a cold because you're terrified that people are going to see you as less able."
Andrea believes pre-employment medical questionnaires should be scrapped.
"I don't see how they give you a full view of a person's abilities. I see it as a way to weed out the weaker. [....] These questionnaires send a very serious message to people with mental health problems that 'you're not wanted, you don't belong and we're going to watch you and we're going to police you - and first wrong move and you're out.'"
Cheltenham Borough Council says its pre-employment medical questionnaire helps it meet its duty of care towards its employee, so that it's aware of, and can help with, someone's health problems.
The council argues that if it didn't ask people about their health, it could be sued by them if they fell ill.
But mental health charities say these questionnaires should be banned, or at least only filled in after a job offer has been made.
Until then, they say, people will continue to hide mental illness. And on top of the stress of applying for a job, they face the fear of being 'found out' or even taken to court and sued.
Data on quantity of antidepressants dispensed
