Alliance hails landmark European court ruling for carers

11.01.00am BST (GMT +0100) Fri 18th Jul 2008

Alliance Health Spokesperson Kieran McCarthy MLA

Alliance Health Spokesperson Kieran McCarthy MLA has welcomed news that the European Court of Justice has ruled that carers should have the same rights against employment discrimination as a person with a disability. The Court ruled that it is not only illegal to discriminate because of age or disability, but also to discriminate because of a person's connection to someone with a disability. The case was taken by Sharon Coleman who worked for a law firm in London and was a carer for her disabled son.

Kieran McCarthy MLA stated: "This is a massively important ruling for carers right across Europe.

"This landmark case has ensured that carers cannot be treated unfairly by employers. Carers deserve equality and respect and this ruling will help greatly in this regard. Discrimination by association is a disgrace and this case will help stop this from happening in the workplace.

"Carers deserve more help and support because they fulfil an extremely important role in the work they do. Their work saves the government a massive amount of money every year, as they often do the work of healthcare staff. They work from the goodness of their own hearts and should be given more respect and support."

ENDS