A ruling from the House of Lords has widened the legal definition of disability.
People with intermittent conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, epilepsy and diabetes can now be protected by disability discrimination legislation.
The ruling follows the case of a woman who alleged discrimination against her employer after she developed vocal nodules, which necessitated her speaking quietly.
A office rearrangement left her desk without partitions, resulting in the woman having to raise her voice and risk aggravating her condition.
Her employer argued that she was not disabled because the condition no longer had an adverse effect on her life.
But the Lords found that conditions whose severity can vary over time fall within the definition of disability.
It means that people whose afflictions are hidden from public view - many of which are painful but do not necessitate the use of mobility aids (the visible signs of a disability) - now have recourse to anti-discrimination laws.
Good call, yer ludships.
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