Mental Health at Work in England, Wales and Scotland

Who this guide is for

Employees and workers in England, Wales or Scotland with a mental health condition who are off sick, have had absences, or fear they will be dismissed because of it. It covers:

• When a mental health condition counts as a disability.
• Reasonable adjustments, including a phased return.
• Sick pay.
• When a dismissal for sickness absence can be unfair or discriminatory.

What this guide does not cover

• Work in Northern Ireland: see the Northern Ireland guide.
• Reasonable adjustments for other conditions in detail: use the reasonable adjustments checker. Menopause: use the menopause checker.
• Benefits while you are off work: use the benefits checker.
• Tribunal time limits in detail: use the tribunal deadline checker. Your other rights at work: use the employee rights checker.
• Crisis support. If you are in crisis, contact your GP, NHS 111 or the emergency services.

The questions that decide the answer

1. Is your condition a disability? If yes, the duty to make reasonable adjustments and protection from disability discrimination apply, whatever your length of service.
2. How long have you worked there? Ordinary unfair dismissal needs 2 years now, or 6 months where the employment ends on or after 1 January 2027.
3. What has your employer done? Whether it followed a fair procedure and considered adjustments decides whether a dismissal was fair.
4. When did it happen? The date decides your time limit.

"Is my mental health condition a disability?"

You are disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a "substantial" and "long-term" negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities. "Substantial" is more than minor or trivial. "Long-term" means 12 months or more.

There are special rules about recurring or fluctuating conditions. Only a tribunal can finally decide whether you are disabled.

"What should my employer do to help me?"

Employers must make reasonable adjustments so that disabled workers are not substantially disadvantaged when doing their jobs. For example:

• doing things another way, such as allowing someone with social anxiety disorder to have their own desk instead of hot-desking;
• allowing employees who become disabled to make a phased return to work, including flexible hours or part-time working.

You can apply for Access to Work if you need extra help. It does not replace your employer's duty.

"Will I get paid while I'm off?"

From 6 April 2026, statutory sick pay (SSP) is paid from the first full day of sickness absence, for up to 28 weeks. It is £123.25 a week, or 80% of your average weekly earnings if that is lower. Your contract may give you more.

"Can they sack me for being off sick?"

With enough service, it might be unfair dismissal if there was no fair reason for it, the reason was not enough to justify dismissing you, or your employer did not follow a fair procedure.

For a dismissal about poor performance, the fair procedure should follow the Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures. The Employment Appeal Tribunal has decided the Code does not apply to a dismissal for genuine ill health where there is no misconduct or poor performance (Holmes v Qinetiq Ltd, 2016), but your employer must still follow a fair procedure. You can appeal through your employer's appeal process.

You can be dismissed if a persistent or long-term illness makes it impossible for you to do your job. Before taking any action, your employer should look for ways to support you, for example by considering whether the job itself is making you ill and needs changing, and give you reasonable time to recover. Acas says dismissal because of long-term illness should be a last resort.

You currently need at least 2 years of continuous employment to claim ordinary unfair dismissal. If your employment ends on or after 1 January 2027, you need at least 6 months.

If your condition is a disability, dismissing you without making reasonable adjustments can be disability discrimination. A discrimination claim needs no minimum length of service.

Before you can make most employment tribunal claims, you must notify Acas to start early conciliation. It is free. Your time limit is paused while conciliation runs, but only if you notify Acas within your time limit.

Why the employer acted matters

For direct discrimination and victimisation, being treated badly and having a protected characteristic (or having complained about discrimination) is not enough on its own. The tribunal asks why the employer acted, and the characteristic or complaint must be part of the reason. It does not have to be the only or main reason, and it can count even if the employer did not realise it, but it must be more than a trivial part.

Proof: you first need facts from which a tribunal could decide there was discrimination if there were no other explanation. If you have those, it is then up to the employer to prove it did not discriminate.

Different tests: harassment only needs the conduct to be related to the characteristic, and its effect on you can be enough even if it was not meant. Indirect discrimination and reasonable adjustments are about disadvantage, not the employer's motive. Discrimination arising from disability needs the treatment to be because of something caused by the disability (such as sickness absence). It is not discrimination if the employer shows the treatment was a proportionate way to meet a legitimate aim, or that it did not know and could not reasonably have known about the disability.

Deadlines you must meet

• Most tribunal claims, including unfair dismissal and discrimination: 3 months less 1 day from the act you are complaining about, or 6 months less 1 day where that act (or the last act in a series) happened on or after 1 October 2026.
• Notify Acas within your time limit, so that the clock is paused.
• Your exact date depends on your facts: the tribunal deadline checker works it out.

Money figures

• Statutory sick pay from 6 April 2026: £123.25 a week, or 80% of average weekly earnings if lower.

Traps

• Not every mental health condition is a disability. The effect must be substantial and long-term.
• A discrimination claim needs no minimum service, but ordinary unfair dismissal does.
• The 6-month unfair dismissal rule applies only where the employment ends on or after 1 January 2027.
• Do not use Northern Ireland rules here.