Photo Credit: Oksana Horiun
In 2008, Cassidy Megan, a nine-year-old from Nova Scotia, created Purple Day to spread awareness about epilepsy (inspired by her own lived experiences). 65 million people around the world live with epilepsy, with about 3 million of them being US adults. This year, we will be recognizing Purple Day by diving into how workplaces can become more equitable for employees with epilepsy.
Epilepsy is a chronic seizure disorder. Epilepsy can be divided into four different types by the kind of seizures a patient experiences: generalized epilepsy, focal epilepsy, generalized and focal epilepsy, and unknown onset. The variation between all of these stems from where in the brain the seizure starts. The experience of epilepsy can vary greatly from person to person, with people across the epilepsy spectrum having seizures that could produce a number of responses from uncontrollable movements to stillness, loss of awareness, and unconsciousness lasting from a few seconds to a few minutes.
In the past, we have written about the importance of workplace accommodation for a variety of disabilities including blindness, deafness, ADHD, and developmental disabilities. We have done this because we see that disabilities are directly tied to health disparities, discrimination, and other inequities that make our peers, communities, and workplaces suffer. Below we have provided some tips for how businesses everywhere can affirm their employees living with epilepsy.
Review Legal Protections for People with Epilepsy and Consider Policy Review
Protecting those with epilepsy is not only the moral thing to do, it’s also a legal requirement. Protections for those living with epilepsy can be found under both the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act. Considering people with epilepsy experience higher rates of unequal pay and unemployment, it is incredibly crucial for workplaces to condemn the prejudices behind them through their actions and words. Similar to other health issues, health inequities relating to epilepsy are higher amongst sexual, gender, and racial minorities, which means the fight to end epilepsy discrimination is intertwined with the fight to end all other forms of inequity. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s guidance, “Epilepsy in the Workplace and the ADA” is a great foundational tool to learn what employers are legally obligated to do and what further steps they can take to protect their employees with epilepsy and treat them equitably. Furthermore, if an employee with epilepsy or any other disability faces sexual harassment in tandem with their disability discrimination, consider reaching out to RALIANCE for a policy review.
Provide Reasonable Accommodations
Like any other disability, epilepsy is something that should be understood on a case-by-case basis. Not all forms of epilepsy are the same, and not all people living with it require the same type of accommodations. The Job Accommodation Network details under their “Epilepsy/Seizure Disorder” page a list of potential reasonable accommodations that can be made for employees with disabilities. These accommodations include flexible scheduling, alternative lighting sources to counter photosensitivity, and providing checklists to make up for potential memory loss associated with the disorder. We encourage employers to further explore this page while not presuming what an employee needs. If the employee discloses that they have epilepsy, indicate that the door is always open for a conversation about what types of accommodations they feel would best benefit them with their specific needs.
Have Epilepsy and Other Disability-Specific Resources on File
It would benefit all employers seeking to be more equitable to have epilepsy and other disability-specific resources on file for hiring, educational, and legal purposes. Below are some of our recommendations:
–Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability
–Epilepsy Foundation (which has a search tool for state and local organizations and events)
–Jeanne A. Carpenter Epilepsy Legal Defense Fund
–State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies
–Workforce Recruitment Program (managed by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy and the U.S. Department of Defense)
Collaborate with Employees on a Seizure Action Plan
Similar to what we said about accommodations, it’s important for employers to communicate with their employees with disabilities about their needs. This is especially true for a disorder at risk for a major medical event like a seizure. In the event of a seizure, an employer should be aware of what symptoms fall under what is “normal” for that person and what would require a call to emergency services. Seizure action plans are not a legal requirement, nor are employees with epilepsy required to fill one out, but the option should be available to open discussion about what workplace best practices are in the event of an individual’s seizure. The Epilepsy Foundation has several action plan templates in a variety of languages to get these conversations started.
Honor Purple Day and Purple Week
In the short-term, employers can stand by their employees with epilepsy by honoring Purple Day and Purple Week each year. This can include educating about epilepsy on social media, donating to epilepsy-related causes, and uplifting relevant programs like the Seizure Recognition and First Aid Certification.
People with epilepsy, like people with all other forms of disability, deserve to have their disability understood and respected by everyone in their community. This Purple Day, we look forward to seeing the ways employers continue to strive to make their spaces equitable and welcoming to everyone across the disability spectrum.
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RALIANCE is a trusted adviser for organizations committed to building cultures that are safe, equitable, and respectful. RALIANCE offers unparalleled expertise in serving survivors of sexual harassment, misconduct, and abuse which drives our mission to help organizations across sectors create inclusive environments for all. For more information, please visit www.RALIANCE.org.
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