Mental Health at Work: Your Rights & Employer Duties in 2026

This guide covers England, Wales and Scotland. The Equality Act 2010 does not apply in Northern Ireland. There, disability discrimination at work is covered by the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. See our Northern Ireland mental health at work guide.

When does mental health become a legal disability?

Under the Equality Act 2010, a person has a disability if they have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.

Long-term means 12 months or more, or likely to last 12 months. Substantial means more than minor or trivial. Many mental health conditions qualify — depression, anxiety disorders, PTSD, bipolar disorder, OCD, schizophrenia, and others. A diagnosis is not required — the test is functional.

If your condition qualifies, your employer must make reasonable adjustments and must not discriminate against you.

Reasonable adjustments for mental health

Reasonable adjustments can include:

• Flexible start/finish times or working from home
• A phased return to work after absence
• Reduced workload or amended duties temporarily
• A quiet workspace or separate office
• Regular check-ins with a supportive manager
• Time off for medical appointments
• Exemption from performance targets during treatment
• Access to an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)

What is "reasonable" depends on the size of your employer, the cost, and how effective the adjustment would be. Large employers are expected to do more than small ones.

Time off and sick pay

If you are too unwell to work due to your mental health, you are entitled to:

• Statutory Sick Pay from day one of absence (from 6 April 2026) — £123.25/week for up to 28 weeks, provided you meet the qualifying conditions
• Contractual sick pay if your contract provides for it (often more generous than SSP)

There is no right not to be dismissed because you are off sick. Ill health can be a fair reason for dismissal. A dismissal can still be unfair if the reason was not enough to justify it, or if the procedure was unfair. To claim ordinary unfair dismissal you need 2 years' continuous employment in England, Wales or Scotland, or 1 year in Northern Ireland. If your condition is a disability, a dismissal can also be disability discrimination. A discrimination claim needs no minimum service.

After 7 days of absence, your employer can request a fit note (Statement of Fitness for Work) from your GP. A fit note can state you are "fit for work with adjustments" rather than "not fit for work" — which can help you return with reasonable adjustments.

Protection from discrimination and harassment

If your mental health condition is a disability under the Equality Act:

• Your employer must not treat you less favourably because of your condition (direct discrimination)
• Your employer must not apply practices that put you at a disadvantage without justification (indirect discrimination)
• Your employer must not subject you to harassment related to your mental health
• Your employer must not victimise you for raising a complaint about discrimination
• If your condition is a disability, dismissing you because of the disability itself is direct discrimination. Dismissing you because of something the disability causes, such as sickness absence, is discrimination unless your employer shows one of two things: that the dismissal was a proportionate way to meet a legitimate aim, or that it did not know and could not reasonably have known about the disability. A dismissal like this is not automatically unfair. Unfair dismissal is a separate claim, with its own service rule.

Frequently asked questions