“Discrimination law protects employees facing discrimination by association with disabled persons.”
Ms Coleman was employed by Attridge Law as a legal secretary. She claimed she was subjected to unfavorable treatment, harassment and ultimately dismissed because of her association with her disabled son, for whom she was the primary carer. She argued this constituted discrimination by association.
Whether the EU Equal Treatment Framework Directive protected employees from discrimination based on their association with a person who has a protected characteristic, specifically disability discrimination by association.
The ECJ held that the Framework Directive prohibited not only direct discrimination based on disability but also discrimination against those associated with disabled persons. Ms Coleman was protected from such associative discrimination.
This groundbreaking case extended the scope of discrimination protection significantly, recognizing associative discrimination. It has been influential in UK equality law and provides important protection for carers and family members.
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OSCOLA Citation
Coleman v Attridge Law (C-303/06) [2008] IRLR 722, [2008] ECR I-5603
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